Dark Conspiracy
by Vivid Scripts
Summary: Around the same time as Episode II, two young Jedi are sent to hunt down assassins. What they find is a dark conspiracy that could have dire consequences upon the fate of the galaxy... Final Chapter is up! please R
1. First Assignment as Jedi Knights

A/N: This is my first Star Wars fan fic. hope you like it. Here are some background notes:  
  
1- This takes place at the same time as Episode II: Attack of the clones  
  
2- This for the most part is not an AU. I've written he story so that it could fit in as an underlying/related story to Attack of the Clones.  
  
3- In case anyone is curious: Both Lana and Alan are around 20-21 (Anakin Skywalker's age)  
  
Dark Conspiracy  
  
Chapter I  
  
First Assignment as Jedi Knights  
  
Lana Rakalla slipped out of bed. She put on a few robes and stepped out of her quarters and made her way down the hall to the mess hall. It was late in the night- the sun had set over the Jedi temple over fourteen hours ago- and Lana expected the mess hall to be dark and abandoned. To her surprise, she found a single person sitting at one of the tables enjoying a midnight snack.  
  
"Anakin?" Lana queried the late night snacker.  
  
He turned around showing his face and indeed confirming that he indeed was Anakin Skywalker. "Lana? Long time no see." He grinned. "How are you, my old friend?"  
  
"Hungry." She took a seat across from Anakin at the table. "And you?"  
  
"I just got in earlier today with Master Kenobi."  
  
"What does the council have in store for the both of you now?"  
  
"A new assignment to protect senator Amidala." Anakin stated flatly.  
  
"You have a problem with this assignment don't you?"  
  
"It's just that the assignment is... so far below us. Protection is the work of security guards, not Jedi."  
  
"Look on the bright side- at least you have assignments. Master Katara and I were always cooped up here in the academy."  
  
"Yes well that's all about to change, isn't it?" Anakin took a drink from his cup. "I ran into your old master shortly after getting in. She told me that you passed the trials."  
  
"Yes, I did. I was one of four Padawans to pass this months administration of the Jedi trials."  
  
"A Jedi knight now, huh?"  
  
Lana grinned. "Yeah, and don't you think I can't sense the jealousy boiling out of your ears." She joked.  
  
Anakin laughed. "I just wish Obi-wan would reach the same conclusion your master did. I'm ready for the trials."  
  
"Yeah, the frustration is unbearable sometimes." Lana admitted. "But don't let it tangle you. Patience is the key."  
  
"You're starting to sound like a Jedi master yourself."  
  
Lana smirked and shook her head. "Stop. I won't be ready for the stress of training an apprentice for at least four years. no maybe five."  
  
Anakin laughed. "Well I have a senator to protect, so you're going to have to excuse me."  
  
"Tell master Kenobi I said hello."  
  
"Of course. You take care, Lana."  
  
* The Next Day *  
  
Lana stood before the High Jedi council. She felt rather nervous standing at the center of the circle with two dozen eyes fixated upon her. Despite her nervousness, she was confident, and to some extent proud. All her life she had labored to become a Jedi knight, and now she had achieved that status. She was proud of the robes she wore, the lightsaber which hung from her belt, and the years of work they symbolized.  
  
"Masters." Lana bowed before the council.  
  
"We have an assignment for you, Lana." The powerful master Mace Windu began. "As you are undoubtedly aware, there has been an assassination attempt on senator Amidala of Naboo. Senator Amidala is a leading member of the loyalist committee. She seeks a peaceful resolution to the separatist crisis. Though she is a leading member of the committee, she is only one of many members."  
  
Lana nodded.  
  
"Senator Bail Organa is another member of the loyalist committee." Windu continued. "Yesterday, several members of his administrative staff on Alderaan were assassinated. We believe that these two incidents are related. We have sent Master Kenobi and his apprentice Skywalker to protect senator Amidala. We intend to assign you with the investigation of the assassinations of senator Organa's people."  
  
"Master, with all due respect, I am not sure if I am up to this task. Perhaps a master of greater skill would be more qualified."  
  
"Confidence we have in you, young Lana." Master Yoda said a few words of encouragement. "You should have confidence in yourself."  
  
"Yes, master Yoda. I trust in your greater wisdom."  
  
"I understand that this is a daunting task, even for a promising young knight such as you." Windu replied. "You will not be alone in this mission, Lana. Alan Dawnstrider will accompany you on this mission as your partner. Of the Padawans who passed the trials this month, you and he are the most gifted. I'm sure that the two of you can unravel this mystery."  
  
"Yes, masters."  
  
"May the force be with you, young Rakalla." Yoda said.  
  
* A few hours later *  
  
Lana watched from her window as the republic cruiser ascended from Coruscant and into space. Shortly after, they were in hyperspace, en route to Alderaan. Lana sat down quietly to meditate upon the force and everything which had happened to her in recent days. Only three days ago she had passed the trials, and now she was on a mission to Alderaan.  
  
After an hour or so of meditation, she emerged from her quarters on the ship and met with Alan in the common area.  
  
"The pilot said it'd be a few hours until we reach Alderaan." Alan reported.  
  
"I was meditating."  
  
"I was just practicing my saber technique." He replied. "The Jedi Guardian must always be ready for combat."  
  
Lana reached for her lightsaber. "Want to practice together?"  
  
Alan shrugged and pulled out his own lightsaber. A single green blade extended from the hilt of Lana's lightsaber, and she stood on guard, watching her opponent. Alan took a stance of his one with only a single blue blade sprouting from one end of his double-ended lightsaber. Lana engaged, and the two sparred.  
  
Lana slashed forward. Alan blocked and countered with a slight, conservative swing. Lana thought she saw a gap in Alan's defense and unleashed a strong flurry. Alan staggered back, losing ground to Lana's rapid swings and strikes. Yet despite her aggressive technique, Alan saw gaps all over her defense. Lana made a swing for Alan's side. He blocked with his saber and countered by kicking her in the gut. He followed this with a quick slash to the side.  
  
Had this been a real duel, Alan's strike would have cut Lana in half. This was only sparring, however and as such both sabers had been turned down in power. Lana's expression twisted with pain as she held her side. Her ribs there would now be bruised for the next few days or so.  
  
"Your saber technique has improved since last we sparred." Alan evaluated. "But there are still some flaws in your fighting. You don't pace yourself well enough. Sometimes to fight too defensively and occasionally you're too aggressive. Take that last sequence for example- you made too many attacks, too many flurries, and I exploited your lack of defense. Fight more balanced."  
  
"Thanks, Alan. I'll keep that in mind." Lana nodded. She clutched her bruised ribs and grinned. "Do you remember when we were little kids in the Jedi academy? You used to beat me like this all the time."  
  
"Yeah, I have a lot of good memories of the academy. I was the dueling champ. During our reign in the academy, nobody challenged me as a swordsman." Alan smiled. "Then Master Tor took me as his Padawan and taught me the real elements of saber dueling."  
  
"He was a real tough guy, your old master?" Lana took a seat at one of the tables, and Alan joined her.  
  
"Yeah, he was. What about your experiences with Katara?"  
  
"We did a lot of meditation and almost no field work. She was training me to be a consular, after all. I didn't do much saber training with master Katara."  
  
"I guess those days are behind us now, we've passed the trials." Alan's voice had a very feint hint of sadness in it.  
  
"Is something wrong, Alan?"  
  
"I've- I've been struggling with some of my emotions lately, Lana."  
  
"How so?"  
  
"I'm just a little on edge with everything that has been happening in politics right now. The corruption in the senate and the separatist movement and everything really just bothers me."  
  
"I think it's something that would be bothering all Republic citizens."  
  
"I know, but I'm a Jedi, I'm supposed to be above such anxieties." Alan paused. "And there's more than that. Every time I think about what happened in Naboo, what the Trade Federation did to my homeland, I get so upset. What makes me even angrier is that the courts let Nute Gunray get away with what he had done. I know I'm not supposed to be feeling this way, but sometimes I just can't control it."  
  
"But you don't give into your anger. That is what is important." Lana said. Alan nodded in agreement. "Nobody can help but feel angry about certain things, emotions cannot be prevented or killed, but you don't have to act upon them."  
  
"You're right, Lana." Alan replied. "I just need to try harder to control my anger."  
  
"But that's not all, is it?" Lana asked. She analyzed Alan with her gaze. "You feel insecure. unsure of something, of your training?"  
  
Alan scowled as he came to realize just how sharp Lana's senses were.  
  
"Don't be afraid to tell me, Alan. We grew up together. You can trust me."  
  
"Master Tor was a great mentor, don't get me wrong. He was hard on me, but he made me strong and tough. He gave me a lot of in depth training on how to use the force within the confines of combat. But he never gave me much training with using the force for other means. Sometimes when I watch you, how sharpened your senses are, and how much information you can derive from the force, I can't help but feel like I missed something in my training."  
  
"Alan, you passed the council's trials. Your training is complete. Sure, your sense may not be as sharp as mine, but that doesn't make you any less of a Jedi than I am. You just mopped the floor with me in a lightsaber match." Lana smiled and gave him a reassuring pat on the shoulder. "Just believe in yourself."  
  
Alan took in a deep, calming breath. "Thanks, Lana. You're right, about everything. All I needed was a few words of encouragement." He paused to think for a second. "We're not Padawans anymore, we're no longer bound to a master, but I don't think we're mature to the point where we can really be on our own. That's why the council paired us together."  
  
"I think that, too, and I'm glad we got paired together for this assignment." Lana admitted.  
  
"Alright. You want me to teach you some new saber techniques?"  
  
"Sure."  
  
A/N: any reviews/comments would be nice. I hope to finish the next chapter soon. Hope you liked it. 


	2. Scene of the Crime

Chapter II- Scene of the Crime  
  
The Jedi pair made their way down the elegant streets of Crevasse City. Alderaan was a very beautiful and naturalized world- the overtones of nature in Crevasse City indicated that. Sweeping grasslands and gentle prairies dominated much of the moonless planet's surface. The people of Alderaan had struck a near perfect harmony between nature and technology. The buildings and design of Crevasse City complemented its surroundings in harmonious beauty.  
  
Lana and Alan observed their surroundings in wonderment and silence. After being on worlds such as Coruscant, it was hard to fathom such beauty. The artisans of Alderaan were truly the finest in the galaxy.  
  
"Master Jedi?" A short, stout man approached the two Jedi as they had been walking.  
  
"Neither of us are masters yet." Alan answered.  
  
"I take it that you are knights then? Well, I am Pedro Starfill. I am a member of the local police force, here to greet you and welcome you to Alderaan."  
  
"Alan Dawnstrider." Alan reached out and shook his hand.  
  
"Lana Rakalla." Lana did the same.  
  
"I take it you must be tired after your trip-"  
  
"No, Pedro, not at all." Alan answered.  
  
"Well I'd take you down to the station, but it's practically abandoned. Everyone is at the crime scene, trying to assemble and pick apart the clues." Pedro replied. "When we got the message from the Jedi council that they were sending two Jedi to investigate, we tried to hold off on beginning the investigation. We wanted to wait until you got here to start."  
  
"Well, we're here now." Lana replied. "Take us to the scene of the crime."  
  
* * *  
  
"Well, as you can see, six members of senator Organa's staff were up here late last night, obviously doing research, when assassins broke into the building and murdered all of them." An investigating officer explained.  
  
"How did the assassins bypass security?" Lana asked.  
  
"There must have been a massive security failure. At least that's what the downstairs guard said." The officer answered. "He said that security had been going crazy all day yesterday, and the maintenance crews couldn't quite figure out what was wrong with it."  
  
"Lana, look at this." Alan called her over as he pointed out several blast points that littered the office walls and floors. "These blast points were apparently created by a type of heavy blaster."  
  
"Our forensic teams will note that." The Pedro said.  
  
"Yes, but its much more powerful than your average heavy blaster. I've seen this before." Alan continued to analyze the blast. "I'm pretty sure that this belongs to a Mandalorian heavy pistol."  
  
"Mandalorian? That's impossible. The Mandalorians are extinct."  
  
"But their weapons are not." Alan answered. "There are a few companies who have successfully reproduced the Mandalorian arsenal. These weapons are strictly superior to most republic or commercial versions, though they are sold for a much higher price."  
  
"Those types of heavy weapons are outlawed here on Alderaan. Only the police are allowed to carry such weapons, and there are laws which prevent them from being imported here or sold."  
  
"So our assassins are obviously off-worlders, and they are professionals." Lana noted. "The motive strikes me as odd. I doubt that this is politically motivated, as these people are not limelight speakers. They do not help write the senator's speeches, nor are they his subordinate representatives. All they do for senator Organa is research... Wait, that's it. The motive- theft."  
  
"Theft?" The investigating officer frowned.  
  
"Theft of information." Alan answered as Lana's reasoning became clear to him.  
  
"Send for a droid. I want the computers to be checked for tampering." Lana ordered. "I want to know if anyone has deleted or downloaded any information from these computers in the last twenty-four hours."  
  
* * *  
  
"It appears your theory was correct, Jedi." Pedro said as he reviewed the report compiled by an astromech droid. "Our forensic investigators have given us a timeframe for the killings, and these computers were tampered with during that timeframe. Somebody downloaded several files into personal datapad before deleting those files from the computer memory."  
  
"Perhaps it was sensitive information that could be used to blackmail the senator." Alan theorized.  
  
"Maybe, but that still does not explain the killings. If all they wanted was to steal the information, they could have just broken in when nobody was around." Lana replied. "I think that this information stolen was sensitive information to the killers, and that they killed the researchers to eliminate all knowledge of such information."  
  
"That's a real possibility." Pedro stated. "I still think that the people responsible for this act are professionals: mercenaries, assassins, or bounty hunters. I don't think your average radical is capable of this."  
  
"Yes but perhaps these professionals were hired by a radical group."  
  
"Are you referring to the separatists?"  
  
"They are a possibility, Pedro, but this is all speculation right now." Lana paused. "All we know is that six people were killed and information was stolen from senator Organa's offices."  
  
* * *  
  
The two Jedi were once again on the streets of Crevasse City, making their way towards the hotel where they would be staying.  
  
"What do you think, Lana?"  
  
"I don't know. I have a suspicion that this is all linked to the separatists, however."  
  
"I agree. It's entirely possible that senator Organa's researchers here uncovered something... dangerous. Something that could prove the separatist's treachery and these mercenaries cleared them out before they could breathe a word."  
  
Lana nodded. She drew close to Alan and whispered into his ear, "There's a man, about fifteen feet behind you, wearing gray suit and a hat." Alan did not turn around to look at the man, but stretched out with his Jedi senses to get a feel for him. He nodded. "That man's been following us ever since we arrived here. I suspect he may know something."  
  
Alan nodded. He felt the power coiling into his legs as he gathered the force to augment his already great physical ability. He concentrated, and in an instant, he leapt many feet into the air, performing a sensational and what most would deem, impossible, back flip. Alan landed a few feet away from the man who had been following them, a single blue blade from his saber lit. Lana drew her own saber and ran towards him. The man bolted.  
  
The hat-wearing man bolted through the streets, trying to get away from the two Jedi on his tail. Alan hastened, using his superior physical conditioning to try and catch the man, but he was too far ahead. Lana lagged behind. The man darted off the main street and into a market alley. Amidst the exchange of goods and credits, the three created havoc everywhere they went.  
  
The man tried to hamper his Jedi pursuers by pushing food stands and other objects in their way, but Alan simply leapt over these obstacles or sliced through them with his lightsaber. Out of options, the desperate man finally reached for his weapon and fired. A torrent of screams erupted from the alley market as people scattered, hearing the blaster fire. Alan easily deflected the bolts into walls.  
  
Tiring of this pursuit, Alan reached out with the force and tripped the runner. He tripped and fell face down, but he quickly jumped to his feet and unleashed a volley of blaster fire upon Alan. Alan did not break a single stride deflecting away the blaster fire. Alan then delivered a hard, incapacitating kick to the man's face, followed by several more blows that left him unconscious on the ground.  
  
"Calm down, calm down!" Lana ordered to the mob of panicked marketers and consumers. Many of them did after seeing that the Jedi had triumphed in defeating the shooter. "Get back to your business. This is a Jedi affair."  
  
"I think we might have caught one of our assassins." Alan said to Lana as he showed her the man's weapon- an X-type Mandalorian heavy pistol.  
  
* An hour later *  
  
The man slowly came to consciousness. He had a bad headache and several bruises littered across his body. His awareness slowly dawned upon him, and he realized that he was sitting at a table inside an interrogation room, and the two Jedi whom he had been sent to monitor were with him. The male Jedi sat at the opposite side of the table, and the woman was standing near the door.  
  
"Who- who are you?"  
  
"You don't have to ask that question. You already know my name, don't you?" Alan replied.  
  
"Alan Dawnstrider." He paused. "And the beautiful woman standing in the corner is Lana Rakalla."  
  
"We tried interrogating you earlier, with the use of truth serums, but you've obviously been trained to resist that." Alan said. "Come to think of it, that's the only true thing you've said all day." Alan shot a passing glance at Lana. She smiled modestly.  
  
"What do you want?"  
  
"I ask the questions here," Alan said. "Mister Grease Pulpit."  
  
The man's facial expression twisted as Alan said his real name.  
  
"Ok, now that we all know each other by name, why don't we just get on with it?" Alan motioned to the blaster that was lying on the table. "Do you recognize that weapon?"  
  
Grease said nothing.  
  
"Of course you do." Alan picked it up and showed it to him. "This is a Mandalorian X-type heavy pistol. You used it to try to kill me."  
  
Grease said nothing.  
  
"You also used it to murder six of senator Organa's staff, didn't you, you scum?" Alan spat the words out with such hatred. They attracted Lana's concerned expression. There was a long paused in the interrogation. After a few minutes, Alan picked up where he had left off. "You know, this is a very, very powerful pistol. The Mandalorians used to brag that they could destroy a starship with one from one of these."  
  
Still, Grease was silent.  
  
"Tell me who you work for, who put you up to this, and who killed senator Organa's staff."  
  
"Do you think your blaster talk scares me? What are you going to do if I don't tell you?" Grease replied with his rogue outer-rim accent. "You Jedi have rules. You can't hurt me or torture me."  
  
Alan grinned evilly. "Is that what you think?"  
  
Grease nodded, with a look of bravery and pride etched upon his face.  
  
Alan then rose from his chair. With a flash of anger, he punched Grease in the face, then grabbed him by the throat and lifted him into the air. "Do you still think I won't hurt you?" Alan roared. "Tell me why you were watching us, and who put you up to it. Now!"  
  
"Alan! What's wrong with you?! Are you insane?" Lana pulsed. "You can't do that!"  
  
"We need this information, Lana."  
  
"We're Jedi! We don't handle our prisoners like that."  
  
"Just shut up, Lana!" Alan roared back angrily. "I'm trying to solve this case, dammit! We need this information."  
  
Lana shook her head disapprovingly. "Such anger leads to the dark side, Alan."  
  
Grease's bravery was now replaced with terror as Alan threw him into the wall. "I'm not even going to give you the honor of a clean death." He said as he turned down the power on the pistol. He then pressed the weapon against Grease's head. "Tell me who you work for or I will splatter your brains all over the wall!"  
  
"Alan, STOP IT!" Lana screamed. "Get out! Now! I'll deal with you later. Just get out!"  
  
"You want to deal with him? Fine!" Alan roared back. "Call me when you want to get something done."  
  
Alan stormed out of the room, leaving his terrorized victim scrunched up in the corner on the floor. Lana sighed and approached him.  
  
"Listen to me. I can help you."  
  
"How? You've already found me guilty."  
  
"Listen, just tell me who you work for, and I'll get the police to give you a lighter punishment. You have to trust me. If you don't, chances are that you're going to get life or maybe even execution."  
  
"The Jedi don't execute their prisoners."  
  
"But the courts do. How does five years and a new identity sound as opposed to that? Good?"  
  
Grease nodded weakly. Lana had him on the edge. Just a little bit of force persuasion would probably get him over.  
  
"Just tell me, you can trust me."  
  
Grease sighed. "A little over three months ago, I joined an assassin clan called Trax'mar-Chil. We got a job here on Alderaan."  
  
"What was the job?"  
  
"It was not exactly the work of an assassin, but we were paid well, so we did it anyway."  
  
"What was it?"  
  
"It was the work of a terrorist. All I know is that we were hired to bomb some building here on Alderaan."  
  
"Do you know which building they're planning to bomb?"  
  
"No. I don't know. The clan master hasn't revealed that to me, yet. But I'm sure it's big. We were gathering a lot of explosives."  
  
"Who hired you, then?"  
  
"I don't know. I'm still a pretty low-ranking member; I don't deal with our clients. I just do what the clan master tells me. We have fifteen members and a near flawless resume."  
  
"How does this tie into senator Organa's people?"  
  
"They knew something; they obtained some information that endangered our mission and our clients. That's why we had to deal with them."  
  
"Can you tell me where Trax'mar-chil is hiding out?"  
  
Grease picked up the piece of paper lying on the table and wrote down an address. "Ok, I've told you everything you wanted to know, sister. Can I go?"  
  
"The local police will take you some place safe, don't worry. You'll be taken off this rock and to safety. You won't have to worry about anything." Lana paused to analyze the broken expression on Grease's face. "You've done a good thing. You may have saved the lives of thousands of people."  
  
Lana stepped out of the room, the paper securely in hand.  
  
"It worked?" Alan asked as she emerged from the room.  
  
"Of course it did." She replied with a smirk. Lana handed him the piece of paper. "Good cop/bad cop never fails." 


	3. Nightfall

A/N: Corinne- thanks for reading my story. As for the name Katara, I kinda got the name from KOTOR. In KOTOR, Juhani's master's name was "Quatara". I changed the Qu to K and decided to use that instead. Feel free to use the name if you want. If you want to use the character, that's fine too- the character of Katara in my story is mostly a blank template- I haven't really done anything with her, and all that's known is that she trained Lana. So you'd be free to create her in any likeness.  
  
As for Alan's feelings... we'll find out, now won't we?  
  
Chapter III- Nightfall  
  
Night had fallen upon Crevasse City. With no moon in the sky to outshine them, the stars glowed brightly in the dark night sky. Bathed in the starlight, the exotically shaped and designed buildings of Crevasse City looked even more majestic. This beautiful majestic scene of the city seemed to provide Lana with a spiritual sustenance as she meditated near the hotel room window.  
  
Alan was seated next to her, also meditating. The owner of the hotel had generously provided the two Jedi with a room high in the building's colossal towers. Lana and Alan could see most of the city from their view.  
  
This day had been long and tiring- Alan needed this meditation time. Despite this, he could not find himself at peace with the force. The harder he tried to push away all distractions, the harder they came back. Alan could never remember a time when clearing his mind was as difficult as it was now. Unable to meditate, Alan decided to poll Lana on her progress.  
  
"Have you found anything yet, Lana?"  
  
"Not much, just bits and pieces, these guys are elusive." Lana replied. "They have stockpiled quite a few explosives, but they are still priming and preparing them."  
  
"Do you know the target?"  
  
Lana paused for a second. "No. But it is obvious that they will not strike their target tonight. We have time to rest and organize our raid."  
  
That said, Lana opened her eyes and ended her meditation. She took in a deep breath and calmly relaxed before the window, once again awed by the marvelous sight of the city. After a few seconds, she turned away from the window and set her focus on Alan.  
  
"Are you alright? You had trouble meditating again."  
  
"Do you remember the temple, the academy?" Alan asked. His voice seemed to hollow as nostalgia suddenly gripped him as he digressed into his memories. "The day we met?"  
  
"Of course, how could I ever forget? That was... more than thirteen years ago." She scowled. "Has it really been that long?"  
  
"It has." Alan nodded contemplatively. "Do you remember Jeb?"  
  
Lana grinned. "How could I forget? Nobody liked him, he was such a bully."  
  
"I keep thinking about the day we decided to get him back for being such a jerk."  
  
Lana almost blushed remembering. She grinned guiltily as if to restrain herself from laughing while shaking her head. "That really, really was not a nice thing of us to do, even if he was a jerk."  
  
"It's really easy for us to say that, now that we're grown up. But it didn't seem so bad back then- it was the childish thing to do. Regardless, we were both chosen by different Jedi masters to become their Padawans. Jeb wasn't. The council sent him to Bandomeer to become a farmer."  
  
Lana frowned. "Do you feel bad about that?"  
  
"No, but I can't help but wonder how his life turned out. How different it is from my own."  
  
"Are you wondering how your life would have turned out if you did not become a Jedi?"  
  
"Sometimes."  
  
A deep feeling of concern was aroused in Lana's heart as the conversation continued. "Are you beginning to have doubts, that maybe you made a mistake becoming a Jedi?"  
  
"No." Alan said. Lana practically breathed a sigh of relief. Alan paused for a moment, trying to gather his thoughts. "The Force is strong with us. It binds us and empowers us, but with it comes the discipline that guides us, the discipline that separates us from the Sith. The Force may not be strong with Jeb, wherever he is, but he's not bound by our disciplines. He's not restricted from feeling the full spectrum of emotions as we are..."  
  
He gazed at Lana, a haunting, pained emotion expressed through his solid brown eyes. Lana met his gaze, using her own brown eyes to gaze deep into his soul. With her sharpened senses, Lana could feel everything- Alan was opening up and revealing his secrets to her. Their thoughts seemed to touch, and Lana could feel his pain, his loneliness, and his love. It was all so... overwhelming. Alan's feelings were all so familiar, for she knew them well. Lana also carried the same sensitive feelings within herself. She hesitantly brought these feelings to light, revealing them to Alan.  
  
Lana drew closer to Alan, and he embraced her in his arms. The two Jedi sat silently, their bodies and minds entwined as they reached a silent understanding. They indulged into what could only be described as joint meditation, and for the first time in a long time, Alan felt at peace with the force.  
  
Lana clasped Alan's hand, which was coarse and calloused from hours of saber practice. It took thirty minutes for the bliss to slowly fade from her system as reality, which she had tried so hard to escape, came snapping back at her. A tear welled in her eye.  
  
"I know we can't do this, Lana." Alan admitted painfully after feeling her distress. "We aren't like Jeb, we are Jedi; this... this isn't allowed."  
  
"But what if nobody knew?"  
  
"If we kept a secret?" Alan asked in response. "We could end up going months, years even, without seeing each other. After this assignment is done, the council could reassign us to different missions."  
  
"It would be hard to be at peace with the force." Lana admitted. "We'll always be longing to be together, to have a more functional relationship." Lana came to a long halt in her speech. "But we can try."  
  
"Do you really think we can maintain that?"  
  
"I don't know. But we're Jedi; we've been trained to resist the darker emotions that seem to come packaged with love."  
  
"We'd be testing the limits of our discipline."  
  
"The easiest way to bear a burden is to share it."  
  
Alan nodded contemplatively. There was so much truth in her wisdom, yet he knew this was wrong. The rules of the code were established for a reason, but he could not resist.  
  
"Alan." Her eyes glazed with the starlight as they glinted while analyzing his face. "We might not have the future, but we have now..."  
  
He leaned forward and kissed her, dead on the lips. He could feel her emotions, as well as his own, cry out with joy that echoed throughout the room. Passion took control as that emotional barrier- vital to the Jedi existence- shattered. As she exchanged kisses with her lover, Lana took one last look back, knowing she had crossed a line, and there would be no turning back. Acknowledging this, her focus snapped back to the present. The two Jedi were consumed by the passions of the night.  
  
A/N: Some more reviews would be really nice... More readers! ...Please? 


	4. The Dark Conspiracy

Chapter IV- Dark Conspiracy  
  
The next day, Alan and Lana found themselves staking out the suspected hideout of the Trax'max-chil assassin clan. It was a simple, unmarked warehouse,not truly capable of evoking any kind of suspicion from the locals. Calling upon the force to aid her, Lana used passive meditation to try to find a safe way into the building.  
  
Alan meditated as well, as to keep his mind clear. Clasping his lightsaber tightly in his hand, he focused upon his role as a Jedi guardian- to combat evil. As a guardian he had to attune himself to his blade; he was one with his lightsaber and they flowed in perfect harmony during combat.  
  
Alan meditated upon his training. Master Tor had schooled him in the deadly art of Vaapad- a lightsaber technique which had been created by Master Mace Windu. Only the most skilled Jedi could learn the difficult technique, which featured an aggressive nature that treaded dangerously upon dark side practices. Alan's extreme dexterity and devotion combined with tireless training from both his master Tor and beneficiary Windu had brought him to master the technique at the tender age of eighteen.  
  
Becoming adept in Vaapad, Alan decided to take his skill and mastery a step further by adopting a double-ended lightsaber as his weapon of choice. Double-ended lightsabers had occasionally been used for training, but were otherwise known as weapons of the Sith. Both Tor and Mace had cautioned the then-Padawan about using such an aggressive weapon. Despite their cautions, Alan continued his training and grew to master the double-ended lightsaber, able to use it both in lightsaber sparring and real-life combat situations.  
  
"I think I might have found a gap in their defense." Lana said.  
  
Alan nodded and followed her. The two of them made their way around the back of the building into an alley. The two Jedi stealthily made their way in through the back side of the building.  
  
There were a number of random boxes, mostly just stacked to make the building appear as though it was an average warehouse, but Lana knew better. She took her saber and cut into one of the boxes. It contained a number of inactive explosives. Permacrete.  
  
As she continued to examine the payload contained in some of these storage boxes, Alan signaled to her that someone was coming. Eleven people entered the warehouse from the main entrance- six Humans, five Rodians and two Twi'leks. A well suited bunch, they were each fitted with sturdy, customized armor and carried numerous tools and gadgets in their utility belts. These must have been the Trax'mar-chil assassins.  
  
"I'll get to the office to the other side of the room." Lana whispered. "There's bound to be some information there."  
  
"Go then." Alan clasped his lightsaber. "I'll deal with them."  
  
Alan stepped out from his hiding place and confronted the eleven men. The twelve men each faced Alan, forming something of a semi-circle before the Jedi.  
  
"What the hell?" One of them asked. A look of anger was etched upon his face. "How'd you get in here?"  
  
"Excuse me, but this is private property, 'mate. You're just gonna have to scurry along now."  
  
Alan's expression turned glum as he eyed each one of his opponents. "Do you know how much time you can get for six counts of murder?"  
  
"Oh so yer some kinda cop, on our tail, are ya?" A man clad in red armor erupted in laughter. "And you decided to try to bust us with no backup, eh?"  
  
One of the Twi'leks interrupted with a few words in Huttese, "You fool, that's no cop, that's a Jedi!"  
  
"Yeah, Jacob, that was a real stupid thing of you to say. Only Jedi carry lightsabers."  
  
The Twi'lek spoke again, "I suppose we're just going to have to get rid of him, then."  
  
"You don't want to fight me, I'm powerful." Alan waved his left hand, calling for a bit of force persuasion. "You want to lay down your weapons and surrender peacefully."  
  
"I, eh, think yer right." Red armor said. "I mean look at em! He's a Jedi. He IS dangerous."  
  
"Jacob, 'mate, you're a bloody coward. You think I've never fought Jedi before?"  
  
A blue blade extended from each end of Alan's lightsaber.  
  
"What in the bloody hell?!" The assassin stared at Alan's double-ended lightsaber, astounded and shocked. "That's not a lightsaber!"  
  
The Twi'lek growled. "Enough talking, kill the Jedi!"  
  
Vibroswords were drawn, and the eleven assassins attacked. The Twi'lek swung against Alan. Alan blocked with his lightsaber, half expecting it to slice clean through the Twi'lek's vibrosword. It didn't, however, and the vibrosword simply slashed against Alan's lightsaber.  
  
Alan scowled. "Cortosis weave. Smart."  
  
With that, he unleashed his skills upon the eleven assassins. The twin blades of his lightsaber hummed and roared as the swung about, deflecting and blocking various assaults from different vibroswords. Alan used the full arsenal of his body- kicks, punches, tosses, and even head butts- to keep fight his opponents off.  
  
Lana watched in awe as Alan fought off his eleven attackers. His mastery of lightsaber combat was a wonder to behold. Granted, his foes were assassins, not Jedi or Sith, but they were still very skilled swordsmen putting up their best effort to defeat the Jedi Guardian. It was unfortunate for them that their great effort yielded no positive results.  
  
Lana slipped past the fight as Alan continued to exercise vaapad on his assassin attackers. Reaching the door to the office at the other end, Lana searched her belt for her security slicing device. She quickly activated the device and hacked the door lock. The door easily slid open and she made her way inside the office. She was not prepared for what faced her on the other end.  
  
Alan beat down the last of his opposition. All eleven assassins lay scattered across the floor. Some of them were missing limbs, others had sustained singe wounds from Alan's lightsaber, and others had just been battered into submission with kicks and punches.  
  
Alan deactivated both ends of his lightsaber and turned to the office. Lana came walking out of the office, her hands empty and her lightsaber lying on the floor. A Zabrak followed her, holding a pistol in his right hand and a thermal detonator in his left.  
  
"Jedi scum! Did you think I would roll over to your raid?" The Zabrak shouted. He pressed his blaster pistol against Lana's head. "Try something stupid, and the girl dies." He shook the thermal detonator in his left hand. "Try something very stupid, and we all die."  
  
Alan's expression remained blank and emotionless. Inside, however, he felt the pinch of fear, the fear of Lana dying, begin to build. Alan instantly realized just how absurd such a fear was, and fought it back just as soon as it began to build. He had been through this scenario dozens of times during his training.  
  
"You don't want to kill me." Lana said passively. "You want to deactivate your thermal detonator and drop your weapons."  
  
Alan grinned. This was one exercise he would not have to repeat- for the time being at least.  
  
"I- I don't want to kill you." The Zabrak deactivated the thermal detonator and dropped his weapons.  
  
Lana stepped away from the mesmerized Zabrak and next to Alan. She then reached out with the force and called her lightsaber up from the floor and into her hand.  
  
"Now, who are you?" Lana asked.  
  
"Vasak B'remorechin." The Zabrak responded as if he had been drugged with truth serum.  
  
"Are you the Trax'ma-chil clanmaster?" She stretched out her influence upon the Zabrak. Such complete mental domination is normally frowned upon by the Jedi council, but Lana's pride deemed it to be appropriate here- she had been caught off guard by the Zabrak's thermal detonator gambit, and would not allow him to get away with anything else.  
  
"No. I'm the vice-clanmaster"  
  
"Can you tell me what were going to do with these permacrete explosives?"  
  
"We were going to bomb the ruling council here on Crevasse City, and the Famed Greven Shopping Center."  
  
"Who hired you?"  
  
This time, the Zabrak yielded no response.  
  
Lana reached out further with her powers. "Who hired you?"  
  
There was still no response from the Zabrak.  
  
Alan stretched out with his own powers of force persuasion. "Who hired you?" Lana asked a third time.  
  
"Nu... Nute Gunray." The Zabrak finally caved under the mental pressure from the two Jedi.  
  
Lana scowled and Alan displayed a concerned frown of his own. The two of them knew what this meant. Nute Gunray and his Trade Federation were members of the separatist movement. If word emerged that he ordered these attacks, it would have dire ramifications upon the delicate situation in the Senate.  
  
"Were there any other terms to your contract with Nute Gunray?"  
  
"He said there was an open bounty senator Amidala's, and he would pay a large lump sum to us if we brought him back her head."  
  
More evidence to further damn the Trade Federation Viceroy.  
  
"You Jedi are too late." The Zabrak had gathered the strength of will to speak out of turn. "We might not be able to fulfill all of our objectives..."  
  
"If you cannot complete all of the work assigned to you, then why do you do any of it at all?" Alan asked. "Nute Gunray won't pay you for incomplete work."  
  
"We are rogues, and for the longest time, we served only the golden credit." The Zabrak paused. "But now I see beyond money. Count Dooku is a visionary. Nute Gunray is his supporter and I became their agent. The separatists will form a new government- a government where my children won't have to grow up to be rogues."  
  
"Do you truly believe that?"  
  
"Yes, the Republic breeds only corruption. Count Dooku has revealed to me the truth- a single man of evil has come to dominate the senatorial proceedings!" The Zabrak rambled. "You cannot stop us. Our best assassins have already been dispatched to Naboo to kill the senator, and at least one of the two targets will be destroyed in the name of the separatists."  
  
Lana scowled. "No." She said to herself in denial. The Force could not have misled her. "That- That's not possible."  
  
Alan kept his focus on the assassin clanmaster. "Which target is going to be destroyed?!"  
  
"No!" The Zabrak roared defiantly. Alan's demands and force persuasion could no longer affect him. "I'll not be a slave to your mind tricks any more! I've served my purpose, my daughter lives on!" The Zabrak pulled out his backup- a mini blaster pistol- and turned it on himself. Alan tried to stop him, but it was too late. The pistol fell to the floor with a loud clatter, reinforcing the dark finality of its owner's death.  
  
"We have time." Alan searched the Zabrak's corpse, finding a datapad along with an assortment of other weapons. "There are only two possible targets, I'm sure we can find the bomb before it goes off."  
  
"No." Lana replied hollowly. "He wouldn't have voluntarily told us about the bombs unless he knew they'd go off before we found them. We need to evacuate."  
  
Alan nodded in agreement. He snatched the comlink from his belt and raised it up to his mouth. The device then clattered to the floor- Alan had dropped it, and his normally cool expression degenerated into shock. His gaze met Lana's. She felt the disturbance as well. The two Jedi could sense a thousand screams of terror and pain. The Greven Shopping Center had just been annihilated.  
  
"No..." Lana whispered. "How... How could this have happened? Why didn't I see this coming?"  
  
Alan embraced her.  
  
"It just doesn't make any sense. I meditated upon this for two hours yesterday." Lana's speech slurred as she spoke each word with a hurrying, nervous delivery. "And I didn't sense any of this. I even told you that we had time- that they weren't going to strike..."  
  
"It's not your fault, Lana." He said trying to console her.  
  
"Three thousand people dead. I failed them."  
  
"Lana, if you're going to punish yourself about something, punish yourself for something you've done, not something you haven't."  
  
Lana nodded, sincerely taking what he said to heart. She hugged him again, and when she pulled away, she realized that blood had been gushing from his stomach spilled onto her robe.  
  
Alan gazed dumbly at the blood smeared on Lana's robe before looking to the gash in his stomach. "What?" The Jedi Guardian looked confused, as if he had somehow been immune to the pain from that flowing wound. "Damn vibroswords."  
  
Lana sighed, and then smiled light heartedly before placing her hand upon his wound. "You need to take better care of yourself." She called upon the force to seal his wound. "I don't know what I'd do if you got diced up."  
  
"And I love you too..." Alan grinned, but his grin quickly faded away as he eyed the Zabrak's corpse. "But I don't know what we're going to do."  
  
"We need to report this to the council."  
  
Alan began to analyze the datapad he had scoured from the Zabrak's corpse. It contained little more than a roster of Trax'mar-Chil and a list detailing the current job of each member. He noted that two specific members on the list had been sent out on an active assassination mission against senator Amidala. They were Zam Wesell and Dragoon Noré.  
  
"Take a look at this." Alan handed the datapad over to Lana. "I think Naboo might be the best place to go now." 


	5. Nabooian Hospitality

Chapter V- Nabooian Hospitality  
  
Lana and Alan bowed before the holographic projection of the Jedi council.  
  
"Aware we are of the situation broiling on Alderaan." Yoda replied. "But, only begun the terror has."  
  
"Thousands of people died in that blast, Master Yoda." Alan reported.  
  
"We felt the disturbance in the Force." Mace Windu said. He paused for a moment before querying the two Jedi knights. "What happened with your investigation?"  
  
Lana began her report. "We followed the investigation surrounding the deaths of senator Organa's employees. It led to us to a clan of assassins. Upon further investigating this assassin clan, we discovered their true mission- not assassination, but terrorism! They had two targets- the Greven Shopping Center, and the ruling council on Crevasse City. We were able to stop them before they destroyed the council building, but the Greven Shopping Center stands as a casualty of the terror."  
  
"Have you learned who hired these assassins?" Windu asked.  
  
"Yes, master. It is... most disturbing. The client of this assassin clan was Nute Gunray of the separatist movement and the Trade Federation."  
  
"Immersed in insanity the senate already is." Yoda commented.  
  
"Senator Organa has already taken the offensive in the senate, accusing the Trade guilds and the separatists of treachery." Mace Windu said. "When his suspicions are confirmed, the senate will explode."  
  
"Will there be a war soon?" Alan asked.  
  
Yoda closed his eyes for a moment. "Difficult to see when, it is. Clouded everything, the dark side has."  
  
"This terrorist bombing, combined with the assassination attempts on Senator Amidala has added fuel to the fire." Mace Windu added. "The situation can no longer be diffused. It is only a matter of time before a single spark ignites the situation."  
  
"There is more to our findings, masters." Lana said. "We also discovered that Nute Gunray gave the assassins a secondary objective- to assassinate senator Amidala."  
  
"Does the name Zam Wesell mean anything to you?" Mace asked.  
  
"Yes. She is one of two members of that assassin clan we have not yet accounted for."  
  
"Zam has been accounted for. The night after you departed for Alderaan, Zam Wesell made another attempt on senator Amidala's life. Master Kenobi and his Padawan Skywalker foiled the attempt, but another assassin killed the Zam before we could learn anything from her. We then sent Master Kenobi to further investigate the assassin. Skywalker was assigned to protect Amidala while she went into hiding on Naboo."  
  
"Masters, we are en route to Naboo now. We have reason to believe that Zam's partner, Dragoon Noré, has learned of senator Amidala's location on Naboo."  
  
"Assistance young Skywalker will require." Yoda said. "Proceed to Naboo, you will."  
  
"Protect the senator at all costs." Windu ordered.  
  
* Twelve hours later *  
  
"I really don't think the system works." Anakin declared.  
  
"How would you have it work, then?" The senator asked.  
  
"We need a system where the politicians can just talk out the problem, agree what's in the best interests of all people, and do it."  
  
"That's exactly what we do. The problem is that people don't always agree."  
  
"Then there should be someone who can solve things and make them agree."  
  
"Like who? The supreme chancellor?"  
  
"I have a lot of respect for Supreme Chancellor Palpatine, but the position he has it just not powerful enough to do what I'm talking about."  
  
"Just what do you have in mind?"  
  
"I don't know. Someone who can step in and override the vote when the senate deadlocks."  
  
"Sounds like an awful lot of power to give to a single person."  
  
"I know, but the senate is stagnant. All they seem to do is squabble and whine all the time."  
  
Padmé nodded. "I can't say I disagree with you."  
  
"There should be... I don't know, a president or something. Someone elected by the people instead of the senators. A position powerful enough to unify the senate but not enough to dominate them."  
  
Padmé's smiled. "That's actually not such a bad idea, now that I think about it. There's a big problem, though. That system might work for a planetary government, but this is the galactic republic we're talking about. Organizing a galaxy-wide election would be a logistical nightmare." She sighed. "The disunity of the senate sure makes it an attractive option, but I don't think it's possible."  
  
Anakin flashed a devious grin. "We can always resort to good old-fashioned dictatorship-"  
  
Padmé smirked. "Now you're just making fun of me."  
  
"Oh no." He said sarcastically. "I'd be too frightened to tease a senator."  
  
She playfully pushed him away. The Jedi Padawan rose to his feet and ran over to a herd of Shaaks. The senator watched as her Jedi protector climbed atop a Shaak. The creature bucked and tried to throw him off as it charged across the meadow. Anakin displayed his skill in balance, as he remained standing atop the charging creature. The creature finally tossed him aside and trampled him. Padmé laughed, but her grin quickly faded as the young man failed to get up.  
  
"Anakin?" She rushed over the fallen Jedi. There was no response. "Anakin?" She turned him over to find him laughing at her. "You good for nothing nerf herder!"  
  
The senator pinned the Jedi to the ground, and he rolled over. The wrestling match had begun, and being a gentleman, Anakin let the lady win. Padmé looked down upon her opponent, an inflated grin of superiority on her face. The Jedi laughed hysterically. Suddenly he stopped.  
  
"Wait." Anakin's voice was dire. Padmé let him up. He reached for his lightsaber. "Someone's coming."  
  
Anakin put himself between the senator and the western horizon. He felt an odd presence. It was still too distant for him to identify, but he knew something was wrong. This area in the lake country was superbly isolated, and only someone looking for the senator would appear here. Anakin suddenly lowered his guard. He deactivated his lightsaber as he realized just who the strangers were. A single figure appeared over the western horizon.  
  
"Alan!" Anakin called to them. He looked over to the senator, who had the most confused expression upon her face. "Don't worry. An old Jedi friend of mine." He looked back to the two figures as they drew closer. "Alan!"  
  
Alan reached the Padawan and his charge. He carried Lana in his arms.  
  
"What happened?" Anakin asked.  
  
"We tracked down an assassin that was coming for the senator." Alan replied. He looked down to his injured lover and tried hard to hide the emotion that struggled to reach the surface. "She was hurt in the battle."  
  
"We need to get her back to the lodge. Come on."  
  
* A few hours later *  
  
"Hey."  
  
Lana smiled at Alan as she slowly returned to consciousness. "I can't believe I was shot."  
  
"That assassin was practically walking artillery- he had two mandalorian heavy repeaters." Alan said as he analyzed the singed flesh in Lana's midsection. "Don't worry, I took care of him and his three assassin droids."  
  
"I'm glad to see that you're finally up." Anakin said as he entered the room. Senator Amidala followed him.  
  
Lana grinned. "Thanks, Anakin."  
  
"Don't thank me, thank the senator." He replied in sarcastic manner. "She paid for all this."  
  
Lana extended a hand to the senator. "I'm glad to finally meet you, senator."  
  
Padmé grinned. "I only get upset when other senators don't call me senator. Call me Padmé."  
  
Lana nodded. "Thank you, Padmé."  
  
"Ok, now tell us exactly what's been going on." Anakin ordered. "How'd you two end up here?"  
  
Lana looked up to Alan. He shook his head. "I didn't say a word."  
  
"Yeah." Anakin joked. "He was too busy fawning at your bedside."  
  
Alan shot Anakin a poison scowl. His old friend laughed in amusement.  
  
"Quit it, you two." Lana said. She rolled her eyes. This wasn't the first time she had to remind these boys to grow up. "Ok, now as for what happened..."  
  
"How are things in the senate?" Padmé asked, ever attentive to her career.  
  
Lana shook her head. "Not good. On the verge of insanity according to the council."  
  
"What happened?"  
  
"We were sent on a mission to Alderaan, to investigate the murders of some of Senator Organa's workers." Lana began. "We were able to trace the murders to a clan of assassins. When we captured the assassins, we discovered that they had been hired by Nute Gunray to commit several terrorist acts, and they had murdered Senator Organa's workers to cover their tracks."  
  
"I'm going to go out on a limb and guess that Gunray also hired the assassins to kill me?"  
  
"Yes. But what happened on Alderaan is... worse." Lana seemed to finish her speech, unable to tell Anakin or the senator of the most dire event on Alderaan. She nodded to Alan.  
  
"We were able to stop the assassins before they bombed the ruling council on Alderaan, but we could not stop them from destroying their other target." Alan's voice reflected a sense of tragedy and personal disappointment. "Permacrete explosives annihilated the Greven Shopping center. Three thousand people died."  
  
Padmé sighed. "I know senator Organa. He is a peaceful man, but he will not stand for this."  
  
"The situation can no longer be diffused." Alan quoted Master Windu. "War with the separatists is inevitable."  
  
"I hope Obi-Wan has found something in his investigation." Anakin commented, breaking a long silence.  
  
"There is still more to investigate?" Lana asked.  
  
"Yes. We captured Zam Wesell on Coruscant, but somebody killed her before we could question her. That somebody was not associated with the assassin clan you caught on Alderaan."  
  
"Are you sure of this?"  
  
"I can sense it." Anakin paused. "We won't have to worry much longer. I have faith that my master will get to the bottom of this mystery."  
  
A/N: Corrine, IMO, the reason the Jedi Council forbids love (romantic love) is because love is fraught with strong, emotional bonds (attachment and possession is forbidden). Additionally, love comes packaged with a number of darker emotions- anger, hatred, regret, guilt, jealousy, etc and when they are combined with an emotion like love (which despite being good, is blinding) these darker impulses are much, much harder to control. Compassion (which Anakin spoke of) is very different from romantic love- I would guess that it is in a sense a watered down version of love, but unlike love, which can be blinding, compassion stresses understanding of other's pain. Love can often be blind passion. Compassion is closer to kindness than love. That's my perspective on it, at least  
  
To everyone else: more reviews. please? 


	6. The Departure

A/N: No new reviews? Come on... I want to know what you think!  
  
Chapter VI- The Departure  
  
It was several hours past nightfall. Lana was resting in her room, recovering from her wound. Her two Jedi colleagues were downstairs; each had their own relaxed position on opposite ends of the couch in front of the roaring fire. Padmé sat between them. Feeling the call of sleep echo within her, the senator rose from her seat.  
  
"Well, I guess with three Jedi protecting me, I should be able to sleep easier." She said. "Good night, boys."  
  
Anakin's watchful eye followed the senator until she disappeared down the dark corridors that lead to her room. Anakin eventually diverted his attention back to his old friend.  
  
"How have you been, Alan?"  
  
"Good. How have your adventures been?"  
  
"They've been... interesting. Everything from speeder chases to gundark nests."  
  
Alan grinned. "Gundarks?"  
  
"Yeah. Obi-Wan fell into that mess and I ended up rescuing him." Anakin said. "How about you? I heard you passed the trials."  
  
"Yeah, and that was only a few days ago. It feels like it has been a lifetime since." Alan reminisced upon his Padawan days. "Why haven't you gone for the trials yet? I know you've got the skill."  
  
"I wish Obi-Wan saw things your way." Anakin replied. "I just can't help but feel like he's been holding me back."  
  
"Well, you can't really put a lot of merit on my opinion for this sort of thing. I'm no master yet."  
  
"You can be..."  
  
Alan grinned and shook his head. "I'm going to wait a while before I pick up a Padawan. Too much stress."  
  
"I just want to pass the trials."  
  
"Don't worry about it, Anakin. You're going somewhere; you're going to be powerful. You just need to give yourself time, that's all."  
  
Anakin nodded. "What about yyour other adventures with Master Tor? How were they?"  
  
"Exhausting. Master Tor enjoyed taking the most physically challenging and mentally grueling missions. Everything from surface wars to cantina fights to big raids."  
  
"A real battle junkie."  
  
Alan nodded. "I'm surprised I actually lasted long enough to pass the trials. But Master Tor taught me well."  
  
"How was Alderaan?"  
  
"Peaceful. Serene. Beautiful. A lot like Naboo in so many ways." Alan said. "I had a hard time leaving."  
  
"I suppose I would too. My homeworld was nothing but sand and heat. Everything here is... beautiful and green."  
  
"I grew up on Coruscant- there is naught but gray skyscrapers and noisy air speeders."  
  
Anakin sighed. "I wish... I wish would never have to leave here..."  
  
"You mean never have to leave her?"  
  
Anakin blushed.  
  
"When I asked you about your adventures, you never mentioned wooing a senator." Alan grinned. "How does Padmé feel about this?"  
  
"I don't know." Anakin replied.  
  
"Have you talked to her about this?"  
  
Anakin shook his head. "I want to... I will."  
  
Alan's grin quickly faded. "But the code forbids-"  
  
"I know." Anakin nodded. He glared at Alan. "And you know that, too."  
  
Alan's composure crumpled. He sunk into his seat and sighed. "What do you want to know?"  
  
"You thought you could hide from me, Alan?"  
  
Alan shook his head. "Lana... Lana and I have been best friends for more than ten years."  
  
"She was there the day we met at the temple."  
  
"I know. She was with me at the academy, she was there when master Tor selected me, and she was with me during the trials. I always felt... connected to her."  
  
"So this was... inevitable?"  
  
"Yes." Alan admitted, a voice full of pain  
  
"Why are you so burdened about it, Alan?"  
  
"Because I know it is something that won't last." Alan said. "The code forbids it."  
  
"The council doesn't have to know." Anakin said reassuringly.  
  
"Thanks." Alan felt some pressure relief. "If you do get involved with Padmé, I won't say anything."  
  
Alan and Anakin shook hands. A pact had been made between friends. Shortly afterwards, Alan rose from the couch and departed to his own room. Anakin watched the fire burn, locked in deep thought for half an hour. Eventually, the fire died as the last pieces of log deteriorated and fell. The Padawan was submerged in complete darkness.  
  
* The next day *  
  
Padmé emerged from the house, finding the two Jedi guardians standing on the balcony overlooking the gardens, meditating. She watched the two slowly before turning around to leave them in peace.  
  
"Don't go." Anakin said suddenly. Padmé turned to face him.  
  
"I don't want to disturb the two of you."  
  
"Your presence is soothing." Anakin replied. Alan opened his eyes and looked over to the young Padawan.  
  
"You had a nightmare, last night."  
  
Anakin closed his eyes again. "Jedi don't have nightmares."  
  
"I heard you." Padmé replied. Alan arched an eyebrow. His neck swiveled to face his old friend.  
  
Anakin's expression contorted in a display of inner conflict. "I saw... my mother." He finally said. Anakin sighed and broke his meditative composure. He turned to face the senator. "I saw her, as clearly as I see you now. She's suffering, I could felt her pain, it was... it was coursing through me like my own blood. And I know that I'm disobeying my mandate to protect you, senator, but I must go!" Anakin groaned. "I have to help her, I have no choice..."  
  
Padmé nodded in understanding. "I will go with you."  
  
"Padmé, that won't be necessary. Alan and Lana are here to-"  
  
"No arguing." She said firmly. Anakin bit his tongue. "I'll go prepare my things."  
  
The senator left, entering the house the same way she came out.  
  
"It's odd that she sensed your nightmare when I could not." Alan noted. He added jokingly, "Perhaps she is as interested in you as you are in her."  
  
Anakin didn't smile. "My mother..."  
  
Alan's expression suddenly condensed with concern. "Anakin, I don't want to butt heads with you about this, but I don't think this is wise."  
  
Anakin shook his head. "I must help her."  
  
"You're directly violating your mandate, Anakin."  
  
He groaned. "I know, but this is my mother. You cannot begin to understand how intense that pain was... and I felt it from here, so far away from Tatooine."  
  
"If you are going to do this, I cannot help you." Alan said regretfully.  
  
"I know, and I didn't expect you to. I can't ask you to put yourself at risk for me, or to violate your own mandate, but please, let me go."  
  
Alan nodded. "I can't say I approve of this, but I will cover for you. If the council asks where you are, I will tell them you transferred the senator to a more secure location."  
  
"Thank you." Anakin hugged Alan as if he were his older brother. He then departed to prepare his own things.  
  
* * *  
  
"Hello, Padmé."  
  
Padmé jerked back. She looked up at the Jedi and took a deep breath. "Good morning."  
  
Lana nodded. She noticed the senator was packing. "Are you going somewhere?"  
  
"Yes." Padmé nodded. She stood and selected a dress from her closet.  
  
Lana's eyes practically glazed. "That's a beautiful dress."  
  
Padmé smiled. "Thank you. I've been saving it for a special occasion." The senator selected another dress. She looked over to Lana, the dress in her hand. "Lana, I want you to have this."  
  
Lana shook her head. "I appreciate the gesture, but I cannot accept-"  
  
"Lana, I insist. You saved my life, and I want you to have this."  
  
Lana hesitantly nodded. "Thank you, Padmé." She continued to watch the senator as she packed. "You're going to Tatooine with Anakin, aren't you?"  
  
"How did you-"  
  
"I know." She nodded, interrupting the senator. "His pain created tremors in the Force. I felt his nightmare last night. I felt his mother's pain, and I felt the way it destroyed him inside, I felt his own agony."  
  
"That's why I have to go with him."  
  
"I understand." Lana paused to watch Padmé as she quickly packed her things. "You love him, don't you?"  
  
Padmé froze. A strong sense of anxiety crept up her spine as she eyed the Jedi Consular. She nervously sighed. Lana's expression was cool and sure. Padmé's was marred with conflict. How could she hide this from the Jedi?  
  
"Love will not bind you, senator." Lana said as she placed her hand upon her shoulder. "It will set you free. Don't be afraid-"  
  
She shook her head. "I-I can't. I'm a senator, and he's going to become a Jedi. It's just not possible."  
  
"You are throwing something away here, Padmé. He loves you very much." Lana explained. "Regardless of how you feel about him, you must know that he will need your support- now more than ever. His mother has always been a very... painful issue for him."  
  
Padmé continued packing. "How do you know him so well?"  
  
"My master and I were constantly stationed at the temple, and Alan and Anakin spent lots of time training with their masters there as well. The three of us were very good friends." Lana came to a long pause as she searched her memory with a bit of nostalgia. She suddenly snapped back to the present. "When you reach Tatooine, please don't let him do anything stupid." 


	7. Dawn after Darkness

A/N: Thanks Nima! I'm coming to the tail end of this story and soon it will be done. I'm guessing three to four more chapters and Dark Conspiracy will be complete. Thank you to everyone who took the time to read so far, and I'd really appreciate more reviews. I like knowing what you think of my stuff.

Chapter VII- Dawn after Darkness

Alan and Lana watched from the balcony as the senator's Nabooian Yacht climbed into the sky and flew out into the atmosphere. The chrome finish of the finely crafted ship shone in the sun until it was too far out of sight to see.

"I'm worried about him." Alan said. It was only right he would be worried. He was Anakin's best friend. "Suddenly, I'm not so sure anymore…"

"Now you think we should have gone with him?"

"I can't- I won't violate our mandate, but he needs us."

Lana shook her head. "What he needed most was not to go." She sighed. Her cool, calculating mind seemed to reel in years of memories of times she had spent with Anakin, the times they were all together in the temple. "Years of Master Kenobi's training have not blunted his anger or frustration. I felt it- it was a vivid part of his dream. I just hope he won't do anything foolish on Tatooine."

"All the more reason for us to have gone with him. If we had gone with him we could have stopped him from doing anything foolish."

"No." She shook her head. "It's too late for that now. He is almost a knight. He should be able to stop himself without us pressuring him."

"That's rather harsh." Alan said. He trusted Lana's wisdom as much as he trusted his own fighting skill. "But I'm afraid it's true. Perhaps it is because of things like this that Master Kenobi has not yet cleared Anakin for the trials."

Lana nodded. "I can only hope that the senator will keep him in check. He needs her more than he needs us now."

"I've spoken to him about her." Alan said with a nod. "His feelings for her are strong and intense. Perhaps they are even stronger than the feelings he has for his mother."

"They are." Lana turned away from the balcony. "Enough. I… I don't want to talk about them anymore."

Alan followed her into the house living room.

"Have you noticed how we are suddenly alone?" Lana asked just before kissing him.

"I love you," was his words in response to the kiss. She kissed him again before repeating the sweet three word phrase.

* * *

Alan stirred in bed. Lana cuddled up next to him, as to get a feel for his body warmth. Something was supremely wrong. Lana scowled. She felt it too. It was stronger than regret, some form of pained disgrace. She dug deep with her Jedi senses. Guilt.

"Alan?"

He knew that she sensed it. He had tried hard to hide it. Now his failure was complete. He opened his mouth, as to confess to his lover the truth.

"I'm sorry, Lana. I… I was foolish."

"You were foolish to think you could hide something from me." She said lightheartedly. Her expression tensed when he didn't laugh at her tease. "What's wrong, Alan?"

"I never told you what happened to that assassin, did I? What happened to Dragoon Noré."

"Yes you did. You told me that after I was shot and passed out, you fought him. He refused to surrender, and you were forced to destroy him."

"No. I only told you that I destroyed him."

A grim feeling settled in upon the Jedi Consular as she gazed deep into the eyes of her lover. He opened his mind to her, revealing the guilt he had been carrying within himself for the past day or so. Reaching out with the power of the force, Alan projected his memory into Lana's mind. She could view it as though it were her own…..

_"Lana!" Alan roared. He grabbed her and pulled her behind a rock as the assassin and his three droids continued to rain blaster fire upon the two Jedi. Alan stripped away Lana's robes, analyzing the bloody, burned wound in her abdomen caused by the assassin's fire. She groaned with pain as Alan pressed down firmly on the wound, trying to stop its bleeding._

_In that one moment, which seemed to stretch on forever, Alan's mind filled with panic. The student who had learned Mace Windu's Vapaad, the Jedi who was nearly invincible in battle, was filled with fear by the sight of the broken form of the woman before him. His heart burdened and chest aching, Alan felt a tear well in his eye as Lana groaned in pain. All other signs from the external world- the assassins curses, the smell of blaster fire, the sound of the blaster bolts exploding against the rock- seemed to pale and fade in comparison to Lana's pain._

_Alan suddenly adjusted his focus. He turned away from Lana's wound and glared at the assassin from behind his rock cover. Dragoon Noré laughed and spat curses in Huttese as he unleashed round after round from his twin Mandalorian heavy repeaters. No longer dominated by fear or pain, Alan was now flooded with a new sensation- anger. This… filth, this assassin, had struck down Lana with his blaster. Now it was time, time to teach him a lesson, a lesson in Vaapad._

_Alan grabbed Lana's lightsaber and threw it out into the field of battle. The weapon spun on a direct arc and diced through Noré's assassin droids. Alan then sprung out from behind the rock, both ends of his lightsaber lit. Sinking deep into the whirl of Vaapad as Master Windu and Master Tor had taught him, Alan twirled his lightsaber as though it were a staff, deflecting dozens of blaster shots. The bolts wildly flew in many random directions, creating a chaotic crossfire that forced Noré to step back several steps._

_Alan's jaw clamped and a vicious, poison scowl manifested upon his face as he continued to deflect bolts with the hum of his double-ended lightsaber. Neither the ache of muscle fatigue nor the salt sting of perspiration could stop him now. The black migraine was swelling within him now. _

_He knew he could defeat this assassin with ease, no matter how many repeating blasters the assassin carried. He could have easily diced the assassin's blasters in two and incapacitated him with a strong kick. But that would not be enough. He would make this assassin beg for mercy. In those few blinding seconds of blaster crossfire, Alan's mind concocted a million different ways he could dice and destroy Noré, and _enjoy_ it._

_Tired of passively deflecting shots, Alan delved deeper and deeper into Vaapad. He sprung into the air, knowing the full extent of his malicious intent. In those few blinding seconds, he heard Master Windu's voice, 'Vaapad is the path to the penumbra of the darkside of the force.' He heard Master Tor, 'you must never allow the dark whirldwind of Vaapad to dominate you.'_

_But it was too late. Even they could not stop him. The memory of their words and teachings could not stop the black migraine split through Alan's compassion and rationale. It shattered the years of Jedi training and restraint. All he could hear was Lana's groans. All he could feel was her pain. All he knew was that it could not go unpunished._

_With one slice of the twin ended blade, both of Noré's weapons hit the floor, destroyed. Alan reached out with the force, maliciously snagging a grip around Noré's neck. The assassin choked and vehemently as Alan's poisonous expression hardened. He groaned. With what little air he had left, he screamed, he wailed, and he begged for mercy. Alan cut him down with his saber, and the assassin, the Trax-mar'chil clanmaster, was no more…_

Lana repulsed. A vivid expression of shock and disbelief rocked her face as she analyzed Alan's face. He had done this? She could not believe it. How could he have done this? In a flash, all of his Jedi discipline had erased itself when Alan tortured, maimed, and killed that assassin. Tears welled in her eyes.

Alan looked away shamefully. There was no need for words. What he had done could not be undone. All he could do was shamefully regret, hope that she would forgive, and pray he would never allow himself to lose control like that again. Lana drew closer to him, stretching her arms around him as if to show she understood. She forgave.

* The next morning *

Alan awoke the morning. He smiled easily. He felt… at peace. It was as if it were some sort of dream. In the later parts of his life, Alan would recall these days to be happiest of his life. He awoke to the embrace of beautiful woman who loved him. The fine, easy weather and beautiful surroundings of the lake country calmed his soul. Here he was far away from his troubles, far away from the imminent war, and far away from the restrictions of the council.

Alan and Lana spent the day out in the prairies, exploring the Nabooian wilderness. Lana had spent her entire lifetime in big cities. The hustle and bustle and noise of Coruscant made for a weak comparison to the silence and peace of the prairie. Even the majestic architectural beauty and harmony of Crevasse City on Alderaan could not match the calm of these prairies.

At midday, the two Jedi divulged into another session of joint meditation, one not unlike what they had done on Alderaan. With two sets of eyes closed, the boundaries between body, mind, and the Force disappeared. There was only the Force. Lana focused and felt herself come to a state of near unconsciousness. There was something coming to her through the Force. A vision…

_The __Jedi__Temple__ mess hall had roared to life. It was lunch time for many of the students and trainers as well. The Jedi Masters had clumped together, sharing a discussion at one table, while their Padawan learners seemed to scatter about the different tables, forming various groups and clans._

_Lana took a seat next to her best friend, Alan. The __two ten__ year-old Padawans had a lot of catching up to do. It had been nearly two years since they were selected by their respective masters, and they had since been spending less and less time together._

_"Hey, who's that?" Alan motioned to the nine year-old boy who looked lost amid the mess hall._

_Lana frowned as she tried to place him. Her master and she were assigned to the __Temple__, so she knew most of the people who came in and out. "A Padawan. Anakin Skywalker, I believe."_

_"Anakin Skywalker? The crack pilot of Naboo?"_

_"Yes, actually."_

_"He looks… lonely."__ Alan analyzed. He called out the young Jedi in training. Lana scowled; she wasn't so sure of this._

_"Uh… hey."__ Anakin said. An awkward minute passed before Anakin took a seat at the table and introduced himself. "I'm Padawan Anakin Skywalker. Obi-Wan Kenobi is my master."_

_Alan stretched out his hand and introduced himself, "Alan Dawnstrider." He motioned to the tall, powerfully built Jedi Master seated next between Obi-Wan and Mace Windu, "Tor is my master."_

_Lana introduced herself as well. "Lana Rakalla. Katara is my master."_

_"You looked kinda lost out there, Anakin." Alan said._

_"I'm….. a bit new here." He said. "I didn't get training at the academy. This place is new to me."_

_"I've heard about that." Lana replied. "Obi-Wan took you in when you had no training at the academy."_

_Anakin__ nodded. He began to eat his food. "Thank you for… befriending me, I guess. It's a bit hard to fit in here, when everyone's known each other since they were babies."_

_Alan smiled. "It's good to have another friend."_

_The three Padawans continued to eat and talk in a cool, casual manner, exchanging various notes and tips about battle training and lightsaber dueling._

_"Anakin, I've heard quite a few things about you…" Lana began. "I heard you were some kind of Prodigy. They say your midiclorean readings are off the charts."_

_Anakin__ nodded. "I suppose that's true. That's what master Qui-Gon told me... before he died." Young Anakin looked downtrodden and upset as he mentioned Qui-Gon's death. "Master Qui-Gon had freed me from the slave's life on Tatooine….. I wish I could have at least been there when he….. passed away."_

The vision, or rather the memory, suddenly shattered. Lana's awareness suddenly felt an overwhelming feeling of agony and pain. An agonizing howl from beyond surged through her mind.

_Anakin__! Who was that… it was a Jedi voice, no doubt, but who? Lana could barely recognize it. Qui-Gon….. Obi-Wan's master. Why? __ANAKIN!_

_NOOO…_

Lana and Alan exchanged looks. He had felt it too. A great disturbance had risen in the force, shattering the peace of their meditation. Something was terribly wrong. They could feel Anakin's pain as he seemingly broadcast it through the Force.

"No…" Alan whispered. "We should have gone with him."

"You're right." Lana said. "We should have gone."

"He's in pain, so much so that Qui-Gon could feel it." Alan said. His expression hardened. "His mother, it must be…"

"Oh no." Lana whispered gravely. She looked to him with eyes uncertain and expression broken. Alan placed his arm around her shoulder, and the two Jedi made their way back to the lodge.

* Two days later *

"Lana? Alan?" The hologram of Mace Windu asked. The two Jedi greeted the senior council member. "Where is the senator? Where is Padawan Skywalker?"

"We decided it would be best if Anakin relocated to a confidential, secure location." Alan replied. "It would not be wise to disclose it now, as this transmission could be intercepted by would-be assassins."

"Agreed." Master Windu said. "This is for the better. The senator needs only one Jedi protecting her, and this relocation increases her chances of survival. Right now we need the both of you."

"What is happening, master?" Lana asked.

"Geonosis. Master Kenobi has proved what your investigation hinted at. The separatists have gathered at Geonosis. Count Dooku has rallied the Trade Federation, the Techno Union, the Intergalactic Banking Clan, and the Corporate Alliance to his cause." Windu explained. "Master Kenobi has revealed the separatist's full intent to start a war with this massive army. He was also captured there on Geonosis. I am now gathering a Jedi strike team. We intend to rescue Master Kenobi, disable their base and factories at Geonosis, and capture the Trade Organization viceroys and Count Dooku himself."

"You intend for us to join you?" Lana asked.

"Yes." Mace replied. He eyed Alan, and for a moment, his trademark iron glare was replaced by a wince of pride, pride in one of his students. "You are our best young warriors. We will need both of you to defeat Dooku. Dooku is the shatterpoint, and if we defeat him, we can end this war, now, before it even begins."

Both of the young knights looked hesitant before the intense, iron cold glare of Master Windu. Even Alan, who had trained under Mace for so many years, could not get used to the lean, intense, and driven force behind Master Windu's cool exterior. Lana looked to Alan and nodded.

Alan met Mace's iron cold gaze. "Where shall we rendezvous?"


	8. The Coliseum

A/N: These last few chapters borrow heavily from Episode II, AoTC. It's pretty much the same coliseum/battle of Geonosis, but I've redone a lot of the fights, and switched up a lot of the dialogue. I've pretty much taken the coliseum battle and spiced it up according to my personal preferences and tastes. Thanks to Nima for reading my stuff.  
  
Chapter VIII- The Coliseum  
  
* Twelve Hours Later *  
  
The Geonosian coliseum echoed with roars and cheers as Obi-Wan, Anakin, and Padmé struggled to fight off the three beasts that would be their executioners. Lusting for bloodshed and roaring with malice, the insect- like Geonosian spectators clamored angrily when Anakin, riding atop the Reek, slew the Nexu.  
  
Count Dooku watched from his balcony near the top level of the coliseum. Among him was the bounty hunter Jango Fett and his son, Boba, Poggle the Lesser, Archduke of Geonosis, and Nute Gunray of the Trade Federation. The count watched as Anakin, Padmé, and Obi-Wan bested the three beasts. He silently ordered for several droidekas to finish the three off.  
  
Deep within the corridor behind the entourage, two mysterious figures lurked. Master Windu emerged from the corridor, the usual intense expression etched upon his face. Mace calculated the situation, finding its shatterpoints and weaknesses. He extended the purple blade of his lightsaber to Jango's throat.  
  
Mace was tall and intimidating, just a few decimeters short of two meters. But his height was naught compared the towering presence of Jedi Master Tor. Tall even by Wookie standards, Tor towered at two and a half meters in height. He had a great natural strength and massive build that was enhanced both by his physical conditioning and the power of the Force. Tor's lightsaber was also built proportionate to his size- the average lightsaber hilt is thirty centimeters long. Tor's reached fifty. With his long, broad, gold blade shimmering before him, the Wookie spoke.  
  
"Count Dooku." Tor's deep voice thundered. He spoke basic, a feat most Wookies are incapable of. "This party of yours is over."  
  
"Brave, but foolish, my Jedi friends." Dooku replied coolly. "You should not have come here."  
  
"Stand down, Dooku." Windu ordered coldly.  
  
"You see, there is no way you can win here, Master Windu. You are impossibly outnumbered."  
  
"I don't think so," was Windu's reply. There was not even a shadow of a doubt in his eyes.  
  
"You know, as I do," Tor said to Dooku, "that battle droids are no match for Jedi."  
  
"Alas," Dooku replied archaically, "if only you knew just how many battle droids we have. You might rethink your statement."  
  
About a dozen super battle droids appeared in the same corridor from which Master Windu and Master Tor had emerged. The two Jedi Masters exchanged looks and began to deflect shots from the super battle droids. Focusing his own immense physical strength and enhancing it with the power of the Force, Tor slammed into one of the pillars that supported the mouth of the corridor. He followed that slam up with a quick lightsaber strike, and the mouth of the corridor collapsed, sealing the balcony away from the super battle droids.  
  
Tor's master sense suddenly tingled. Something was stewing behind his back, and he could feel it. Jango! Mace had released Jango! Tor sprung at the bounty hunter, punching the bounty hunter with his off hand. The force of Tor's Wookie strength had been enough to smash Jango's face, but not enough to stop him from the deploying his flame thrower. The bounty hunter and the Jedi Master both flew off the side of the balcony railing.  
  
The Wookie Jedi Master was bathed by flames from Jango's flamethrower, but Tor used the power of the Force to shield himself from the brunt of the heat. He landed on his feet on the floor of the coliseum. The Jedi Master quickly rolled around in the dirt, smothering the flames that had been licking away at his fur before charging off the join the survivors at the center of the floor.  
  
"Count Dooku." Mace Windu said calmly, holding his purple blade out in front. "By my authority as a Senior Member of the Jedi Council, I place you under arrest for charges of high treason, conspiracy, attempted murder, sabotage, and espionage. You are to accompany me to Coruscant, where you will be admitted to the courts for trial."  
  
Dooku grinned. "All the same humdrum, right Mace?"  
  
Mace's solemn expression did not blink a bit. "Stand down and submit to arrest, Dooku."  
  
Dooku sighed. "My Jedi friend, if only you knew the truth, about just how flawed and corrupt the Republic really is. You'd be fighting along side me." Dooku drew his own curved lightsaber. His entourage watched in awe a single red blade sprouted from the hilt. "The Jedi only hamper and destroy themselves by serving an institution so corrupt."  
  
The two warriors exchanged blows. They seemed to be evenly matched for a while as Windu's purple blade clashed against the red of Dooku. Both were grand masters of all six forms of lightsaber combat. Mace had the advantage however- he was a grandmaster of Form VII, Vaapad.  
  
There was a halt in the fighting as the two Force adepts stood separated by five feet of distance. Among Dooku's entourage, Boba watched with awe and interest, such was expected of a young boy. The Neimoidian Nute Gunray cowered in the corner, afraid he would be hit by a stray lightsaber swing. Poggle the Lesser simply watched in silent reverence, neither afraid nor awed, he simply leaned on his cane and observed.  
  
After a minute of intensity passed, Master Windu attacked again. Unleashing flurry after flurry upon the rogue Jedi Dooku, Mace's aggression pushed the count back. Thinking he saw a hole in Mace's defense, Dooku decided to strike with a swing across the midsection. Mace saw it coming and countered with a defensive spin. After batting away a few attacks from the count, Mace's defensive spin suddenly became an offensive tornado as he unleashed the dark whirlwind of Vaapad upon the count.  
  
Dooku struggled to deflect each blow from Mace. Master Windu moved as though he had a hundred hands and a hundred lightsabers- he rained blows and slices in such great multiples that the count was nearly overwhelmed. Dooku fell into a retreat, falling back against the wall.  
  
"I see that the dark side has not done much to enhance your lightsaber skills." Mace spat. Dooku eyed him darkly as sweat beads dripped down his face. The count attacked again, and the two firmly continued to exchange blows. A few seconds into this latest exchange, Mace felt a tremor in the force. His master sense beckoned.  
  
Jango!  
  
Mace batted away Count Dooku's lightsaber and sprung into the air. Flames from the bounty hunter's flame thrower licked Mace's robes as he flew over the railing of the balcony. As he fell down to the coliseum arena floor, Mace saw the bounty hunter, floating in the air with his jetpack, his face, which had been smashed earlier by Master Tor, covered by the sleek Mandalorian helmet.  
  
Mace adjusted his position in the air, and landed on his feet. Once on the sandy floor of the Geonosian coliseum, he cast away his outer robe and raced to the center of the arena where some sixty Jedi had gathered around the three survivors. No sooner had he sprung into action, the arena began to flood with battle droids.  
  
Among the numerous Jedi fighting in the arena, Alan and Lana stood side by side, deflecting away blaster bolts and hacking at enemy droids. Anakin, Padmé, and Obi-Wan leapt of the back of the Reek they had been riding. Alan tossed Anakin a spare lightsaber, and Lana gave Obi-Wan a spare as well. The two cut each other loose of their cuffs and joined their Jedi brethren in the fighting. Padmé recovered a blaster rifle from a fallen battle droid and began firing.  
  
"Together again, huh?" Anakin asked as he stood back to back with Alan.  
  
"Just like the smugglers moon all those years ago." Alan grinned. The two Jedi eyed each other with an odd sort of lets-do-this expression.  
  
They sprung into the thick of the combat. Anakin aggressively cut his own route through the thick of the battle droids before him. Alan masterfully used the defensive Vaapad spin and his double-ended lightsaber to create a sphere of defense. Everything that came within five feet of him would be diced by his twin blades. Lana watched the two boys as they pounced and fought, and silently decided to stay close to the senator, where her rather... limited saber skills would be more useful.  
  
Something new had arrived to coliseum now, however. Battle droids and even super battle droids were merely fodder for the Jedi. The Geonosians had set up their turret mounted sonic blasters. A Jedi could have a field day deflecting blaster fire from the droids, but the globes of concussive energy deployed by these sonic blasters were something completely different.  
  
Alan leapt into the air, as to pounce upon a group of battle droids. Midway through his leap, he was suddenly struck by sonic blaster fire. The concussive globe hit him with such force that it sent him spiraling into the air, and slamming into one of the columns at the center of the arena. Alan hit the ground hard, red flowing from his mouth. He gagged and coughed, and the expelled the blood coming from his battered lungs. Despite this, neither the pain of his battle wounds nor the fatigue of his muscles could hamper him from rising again. He picked up his lightsaber and tossed the weapon. It diced right through the turret mounted sonic blaster before boomeranging back to its master.  
  
Master Tor, Master Windu, and Master Kenobi formed their own circle of defense in one of the quadrants of the arena. Each master displayed their own unique style and power. The ultimate master (and creator) of Vaapad, Mace's defensive and offensive spins and hundred-handed dexterity kept him atop the battle droids. Obi-Wan passively deflected as many shots as he could, but used his pouncing jumps and powerful assortments of kicks and punches to battle the droids. Master Tor was also a master of Vaapad, yet he did not rely upon it as much as Mace had. He exploited his strength, his size, and the length of his massive lightsaber.  
  
Jango Fett watched the battle from the balcony. He eyed the three Jedi Masters and suddenly remembered his smashed face. He could no longer feel the stinging pain due to the battle stimulants he had taken, but a certain lust for retribution filled his mind. The bounty hunter crouched down and unleashed the explosive rocket which was secretly stashed in his jetpack. The three Jedi Masters scattered as the ground where they once stood was showered with flames from the resulting explosion. Jango jumped into combat, the jets of his backpack flaring to life.  
  
Jango scoured the arena until he found the Wookie Jedi Master who had smashed his face. The bounty hunter set down eight meters away from the Wookie, both Mandalorian Heavy Pistols drawn, and unleashed a volley of fire upon him. Master Tor simply waved off the blaster bolts with whirling swings from his gold lightsaber. Realizing the ineffectiveness of his pistols, the bounty hunter holstered them, favoring the snare hidden within his gauntlets.  
  
The wire sprung from Jango's gauntlet noosed around Tor's arms. The Wookie dropped his lightsaber and looked up at the bounty hunter with a cold grin. What a fool! Jango activated his jetpack and tried to fly off while dragging the Jedi Master, but the Wookie's strength was just too great.  
  
Tor grabbed the wire which had bound his hands together and to Jango and pulled on it. With a single great heave, the bounty hunter came splattering back towards the ground, and flying into the Jedi Master. Tor greeted him with a massive punch to the chest. The bounty hunter flew back several meters and fell on the flat of his back. Jango's jet pack clicked with static. It was broken.  
  
Tor pulled at the wire with his great strength, and it snapped, freeing his hands. Jango sprung to his feet, realizing he was about four meters away from the Wookie. Jango searched his equipment for a solution. His flamethrower, which had helped him so much earlier, was out of ammunition. He had no choice.  
  
The bounty hunter was a quick draw; he probably had the fastest shooting reflexes in the galaxy. Still, there is a massive gap between fastest shooting reflexes in the galaxy and JEDI reflexes. In that half second it took Jango to make a conscious decision to draw his twin blaster pistols, Tor had already summoned his lightsaber back to his hand.  
  
Jango watched in horror as the towering Jedi Master charged at him, not missing a single stride to deflect his blaster volleys. When he was within a meter of Jango, Tor seemed to lower his lightsaber, as if intentionally leaving himself vulnerable to Jango's blaster fire. Jango squeezed off another bolt, and watched in horror as the Jedi Master extended his hand, allowing his palm practically absorb the blaster bolt.  
  
The last thing Jango saw was the swinging arc of the golden blade of Tor's lightsaber. The last thing he heard was that menacing Wookie growl. Jango's headless body crumpled as his head flew off his shoulders and the Mandalorian helmet flew off his head. Count Dooku grimaced, and young Boba, who had been sitting next to him, crumpled into tears.  
  
Tor looked down upon Jango's headless body. He was a great warrior. Jedi customs may not pay much homage to great warriors, but Wookie customs did. Tor's expression seemed to fold into a mixture of respect and sympathy as he roared something in the Wookie language. A second passed, and Tor suddenly averted his attention from the enemy he had defeated.  
  
"Senator, get down!" Lana roared. She pounced upon Padmé, forcing the both of them to the ground as several globes of concussive energy flew overhead. The globes struck the three Jedi who had been standing behind them. The Jedi were hit with such force that they went flying into the air, and slammed into the walls of the arena. Lana watched, horrified, as the three Jedi crumpled to the ground, blood dripping out of their mouths. Much of their skeletal structure had been shattered by the force of the impact, and now they were in shock. Lana could sense all of this.  
  
More of the turret mounted sonic blasters had been loaded into the coliseum, and the concussive globes of energy they launched wrought havoc on the Jedi. More and more battle droids were pouring into the coliseum. Lana stayed close to the senator and watched as Jedi began to drop like flies. The Force could only aid them so much- the Jedi were still organic beings that were hampered by pain and fatigue. The seemingly endless amount of battle droids knew neither pain nor fatigue.  
  
"Good to see you again, Master." Amidst the fighting, Alan had somehow found his way to the side of Master Tor. "I never thought we'd be fighting again so soon.  
  
The Jedi Master growled a bit before switching back to basic, "My old Padawan, I miss those days. Finding a new Padawan is much harder then you would ever think." Alan smiled as he continued to deflect blaster bolts. Tor let out a Wookie scowl. Something was coming. Something... dangerous. Tor turned to the nearest arena door.  
  
"Droidekas!" Tor roared as he pointed the four or five destroyer droids that came rolling out of the arena door. He charged at them, deflecting their heavy blaster fire and reaching out with the force to short-circuit their deflector shields. Alan followed his old mentor into battle against the droidekas.  
  
As the Master-Apprentice team disassembled the destroyers, more seemed to come rolling out the arena door. Tor could count nine. Alan struggled to battle them, keeping his double-ended lightsaber spinning and deflecting, but fatigue was beginning to grip at his muscles. Tor could sense it.  
  
"Alan! Alan, go!" Tor ordered as his whirl deflected blaster shots.  
  
"Master, I'm not leaving you!" Alan growled back.  
  
"Your fatigue is beginning to hold you back." Tor replied as he batted away more blaster shots. "If you can't hold up against the droidekas, don't risk your life!"  
  
"No, Master. I'm staying with you!" Alan's devotion to his old mentor was as true as his devotion to the Jedi order, and as strong as his love for Lana. This Wookie was the closest thing he had to a father.  
  
"GO!" Tor roared as he charged even deeper into battle. Curbing to his master's will, Alan gradually fell back and watched as Tor battled the nine droidekas. Three more destroyers rolled out of the arena doors, but Tor's power was too immense. Alan watched in awe as his old master exerted the full force of Mace Windu's Vaapad.  
  
Tor's immense Wookie strength, augmented by the power of the Force, had made him into an incredible hulk of a Jedi. His defensive spins deflected the dozens of blaster bolts that raged against him. Tor panted; fatigue was beginning to get a grip of his muscles as well. A single droideka got too close to Master Tor. The Jedi Master shook away the fatigue, grabbed the droid with his off hand, and tossed away it as though it were a child's toy.  
  
When he sensed that he had done enough, Tor jetted into the air and away from the droidekas. Midway through his jump, he reached for the single extra piece of equipment he had brought with him: an ion grenade. Alan watched as his mentor's ion grenade did its work and the dozen droidekas collapsed to the ground lifeless.  
  
"No." Tor growled to himself as he still skidded in midair. It was too late to change his direction now. He had sensed it too late. Tor looked to this left, and three globes of concussive energy slammed into his side. The Wookie went careening through the air, towards the other side of the arena.  
  
"Master!" Alan roared. He sprinted through the arena, occasionally breaking stride to deflect a stray blaster bolt or so. On the other side of the Arena, the Wookie slowly rose to his feet, weakened severely by the fire from that Sonic Blaster. He was greeted by automatic fire from seven super battle droids.  
  
Tor deflected much of the fire, but one bolt got through and struck him on the left shoulder. This was followed by another, which struck his stomach, and a third which hit the center of his chest. Master Windu saw that his old friend was in trouble and sprinted to aid him. Weakened by the fire, the Wookie dropped to a knee. Summoning up the last ounce of his strength and augmenting it with the force, he threw his lightsaber at his assailants. Mace did the same. The purple lightsaber and the gold lightsaber mowed down twelve droids before returning to their master's hands. Tor collapsed, and suddenly the battle droids came to screeching halt.  
  
Alan dropped to his master's side and helped pull him back to the circle of survivors at the center of the arena. Mace's iron cold expression weakened as he looked upon his old Jedi friend. The Wookie who had fought so intensely and gallantly was now battered and beaten. Many ribs were cracked by sonic blaster fire, and blood was gushing from the wounds the blaster fire had inflicted upon him.  
  
"Master," Alan said to his battered mentor.  
  
The Wookie smiled. "You learned well, my old Padawan. You learned well..."  
  
"Master, you can't-"  
  
"My old apprentice, you fought well. I have nothing more to teach you."  
  
"No, master I need you!"  
  
"No, you need your own Padawan. Pass on what you have learned from me." The Wookie growled a few words in his own native language, neglecting basic for a few seconds. He solemnly looked into the eyes of his old apprentice, which were beginning to flood with tears. "I'm proud of you, Alan. I'm proud."  
  
Mace watched as the great Jedi Master faded away and his body became one with the force. His normally calloused and intense expression faded for a little, allowing the grief to be actively displayed. He had lost a great friend and powerful ally. Alan picked up his master's lightsaber and clipped it to his belt. Lightsaber inheritance- such was the way of the Jedi.  
  
Alan bobbed his head as he painfully reviewed what had happened. The hurt and pain could not extinguish within his heart of hearts. He knew this feeling. He had felt it that day Lana was shot- that splitting black migraine, the rush of anger, the call for Vaapad. He rose to his feet and surveyed the battlefield. Only a few Jedi had survived- Anakin and Obi-Wan were among them. Lana was still protecting the senator.  
  
Alan's jaw clenched and that same poison scowl manifested upon his face. Lana met his gaze, and within that one fleeting second, she knew. She sensed it. She shook her head, but he paid her no mind. He looked up to Count Dooku, who seemed to lord over the arena from his balcony. Alan focused the toxic mixture of anger and hatred that was stewing within upon Count Dooku. He would pay. For Jedi Master Tor, he would pay.  
  
"Master Windu!" Dooku called out the Senior Council member. "You have fought gallantly, worthy of recognition in the archives of the Jedi order!"  
  
Mace looked up to Dooku with a powerful expression of contempt. This crafty coward who had somehow weaseled his way out of personal lightsaber combat now spoke to him about fighting gallantly?  
  
"But now, it is finished. Surrender and your lives will be spared."  
  
"We will not become hostages to be bartered, Dooku!" Mace shouted defiantly. The rest of the Jedi made no audible noise, but the tremors they made in the Force seemed to echo Mace's defiance.  
  
"Then I'm sorry, old Jedi friend." Dooku made his order, and the droids got back into position to begin fighting again. Anakin raised his lightsaber. Alan lit both ends of his lightsaber and aggressively twirled it, showing his eagerness to get back to fighting. Padmé sighed as she raised her blaster rifle. She couldn't explain why, but she suddenly got the urge to look skyward.  
  
"Look!"  
  
A/N: So, uh, how'd ya like those action sequences? Ha. Tell me what you think. 


	9. Attack of the Clones

A/N: Well this is the second to the last chapter (chapter X will be the finale) so I hope you guys liked the story. And please, feel free to comment I want to know what you think of my work.  
  
Chapter IX- Attack of the Clones  
  
Five Republic attack gunships circled the skies. They swept down into the coliseum, unleashing a barrage of blaster fire wherever they went. Havoc rained from the skies as the droids tried to shoot down this new threat. It was no use- the gunship's armor was too thick to be penetrated by small- arms fire.  
  
"Around the survivors, a perimeter create!" Master Yoda ordered. The clone nodded in compliance. The five gunships landed as Jedi began to get in.  
  
As Jedi loaded onto the gunships, clones got off, reinforcing their position with fire from their own blaster rifles. Lana, Anakin, Alan, Padmé, and Obi-Wan boarded one of the gunships. Mace boarded the same gunship Yoda commanded. After a few minutes of fighting and bombardment, the gunships took off and left the coliseum. Only seconds after the fighting had stopped, the coliseum was empty, and seemed to echo with irreverent silence.  
  
All were gone. Only the boy, Boba Fett, remained. The young clone stepped into the sandy arena, bypassing the broken parts of droids and the blood of slain Jedi to find his father's helmet. He clasped the Mandalorian blue and silver helmet and touched his head to it, as though it could attune him to the soul of his slain originator.  
  
Jango probably would have preferred that this would have happened later when the boy was older, but the force of circumstance was greater than a dead man's wishes. Boba looked deep into the Mandalorian helmet, knowing that he too would don the armor someday, and follow in his father's footsteps.  
  
* * *  
  
"Aim right above the fuel cells." Anakin ordered. The pilot nodded and fired a pair of missiles at the energy tower, hitting it in the bottle neck right above the fuel cells. The resulting explosion caused the tower to buckle and collapse, crushing a few battle droids with it.  
  
"Good call, my young apprentice!" Obi-Wan exclaimed. Anakin smiled, genuinely happy to hear some words of encouragement, rather than criticism, from his mentor.  
  
The five gunships spirited away to the scene of the main battle. Republic assault ships landed, unloading the legions of clone troopers. Commanders rallied and led their troops into battle against the ranks of battle droids. AT-TE walkers were dropped into battle by larger versions of the Republic attack gunships.  
  
Many of the gunships docked at the forward command center, where clone troops had gathered and surged forward. Anakin watched as the fight raged on. Clone troopers fell. Battle droids fell. Hailfire droids sped along on their tracks and fired their surface-to-surface rockets at AT-TE walkers. All around, the air was thick with the smell of blaster fire.  
  
Lana looked up at the five other gunships that had formed up on their wing. She could see what was happening; she could predict the future with the force. She looked down to the troops on the ground and watched as each division of fifty or so clone troopers was led by a single lightsaber.  
  
"Pilot!" She ordered. She pointed to the gunships that had formed up on the wing, "synchronize your fire with theirs."  
  
"Yes ma'am." The clone nodded. Within a few seconds, the six gunships unleashed a barrage of missile fire on the battle droid's ranks. The battle droids had bottlenecked through an important tactical pass, and were easy pickings for the gunship's air-to-surface missiles. The gunship wing continued to rain more and more missiles on the ranks of battle droids, clearing the way for the Jedi and their clone trooper support.  
  
As the smoke cleared from the explosions, Alan noticed something glaring in the distance- a speeder bike. Anakin scowled. He had noticed it too. The two Jedi reached out with the force, as if to identify the rider.  
  
"Dooku." Alan spat the name with such anguish and distaste as his eyes opened. He motioned to the pilot, "Shoot him down!"  
  
"We're out of missiles, sir!"  
  
Anakin's jaw clenched, matching the tension in Alan's jaw. "Follow him, then!"  
  
"Yes sir."  
  
Dooku looked back to the massive gunship that had been following his speeder bike. He subtly shook his head and punched a few buttons in his wristband, and the two Geonosian starfighters that had been serving as his escort pulled back to engage the gunship.  
  
Blaster fire began to rock the gunship, each shot hitting closer to home than the next. The four clasped their handrails close, as to avoid falling out due to turbulence. Padmé had not held on so tightly. The ship rocked from one especially bad hit, and the senator fell out.  
  
"Padmé!" Anakin cried. "Turn the ship around!"  
  
"Don't." Obi-Wan said to the pilot.  
  
"Padmé's back there!" Anakin rambled. "We have to go back for her! Turn the ship around!"  
  
"Anakin," Lana whispered, "don't."  
  
"No! We have to go back!"  
  
"We must get Dooku!" Alan's normally cool voice seemed to be rigged with poison. A vivid expression of retribution was etched upon his face.  
  
"Fine." Anakin growled. "Just let me out, I'll find her."  
  
"Anakin, you can't let your personal feelings get in the way!" Obi-Wan said. Lana's nod seemed to echo and reinforce the Jedi Master's wisdom. "There are four Jedi here, four chances to get Dooku. If get him, we can end this war, before the entire galaxy is consumed by it."  
  
"I don't care!" Anakin roared. A salt stream dripped down from his left eye. "Let me out!"  
  
"I WILL NOT let Dooku get away!" Alan roared. The poison of retribution and vengeance was smeared all over his voice. Obi-Wan paid it no mind because he was focused on Anakin, but Lana looked worried. "We can't let him get away with this!"  
  
"Anakin, you are going to be expelled from the Jedi Order!" Obi-Wan exclaimed. He grabbed his young apprentice by the shoulder and glared at him, face-to-face. "Think with your mind, not with your heart. What would Padmé do if she were in your position?"  
  
Young Skywalker took a deep breath. "She would do her duty." It was a heavily burdened and pained voice that admitted this.  
  
Anakin wiped the salt stream from his face as the gunship came to the hangar where Dooku was hiding. The ship was rocked by more blaster fire. This time Lana fell out.  
  
"Lana!" Alan growled as he tried to grab her hand. He suddenly felt a panic again as he peered out the ship. He couldn't see her. That same panic and fear that had gripped him the day Lana was shot by Noré began to emerge. Alan shook it away. She was a Jedi. The drop was not long, she would survive. Alan had faith in her, in her abilities.  
  
With a renewed sense of duty, the Jedi Guardian hopped out of the gunship. The black migraine seemed to encroach upon him again as he drew closer to the threshold of the door to the hangar. Obi-Wan and Anakin followed him, and all three Jedi Guardians were focused on doing their duty. Duty. That's what this was- duty.  
  
They came to the main hangar room, where Count Dooku was prepping a ship and supplying orders to a droid. The black migraine became a splitting headache as Alan eyed the Count with his vicious scowl. Anakin carried a frown which was almost as intense as Alan's scowl. He felt the same burden Alan did.  
  
"Count Dooku." Anakin said. "You're going to pay for all the Jedi you've killed today."  
  
"Indeed you shall." The taint in Alan's voice seemed to echo.  
  
"There's no way he can take all three of us." Obi-Wan said. "We move in slow-"  
  
"No, I'm taking him NOW!" Anakin roared. A split second later, Alan sprung into action without warning. Anakin followed. Dooku quickly reacted by showering the two Jedi with a fresh serving of force lightning. He then used the Force to slam Alan into the wall. Anakin fell back, skittering across the floor.  
  
Sparks of Force lightning jumped across Dooku's fingertips. "You cannot hope to match my Jedi powers. I strongly suggest that you back down." When Obi-Wan did not, Dooku unleashed another volley of the lightning. The blue blade of Obi-Wan's lightsaber absorbed the jagged lightning bolts.  
  
"No." Obi-Wan spat defiantly.  
  
Dooku drew his lightsaber. The red blade jetted out of the curved hilt of the saber. A sort of staring contest initiated as the two circled for a moment. Obi-Wan charged. In a violent exchange of blows and cuts, Dooku had passively matched Obi-Wan's attacks.  
  
"Obi-Wan, you disappoint me." Dooku said as they reached a pause in the combat. "I begin to wonder if Qui-Gon really did train you."  
  
The two exchanged blows again. Dooku fought more aggressively this time, pushing Obi-Wan back towards the wall. A grandmaster in all six forms of lightsaber combat, Dooku did not seem to have trouble asserting his mastery over Obi-Wan.  
  
"And Master Yoda holds you in such high esteem..." Dooku said as he countered Obi-Wan's latest blow. Obi-Wan's blue lightsaber met Dooku's red lightsaber in a climactic clash. Obi-Wan tried to muscle his saber over Dooku's. The dark Jedi grinned evilly, his red lightsaber illuminating his evil expression. "Surely you could do better!"  
  
Dooku suddenly retracted his saber and struck again, burning Obi-Wan in the ribs. He followed this with another strike to the leg and one to the hip. The Jedi Master crumpled to the floor. Dooku's darkness seemed to radiate throughout the room. He paced a bit and raised his saber over his head, preparing to deliver the killing blow.  
  
Anakin roared as he sprung into action. His blue saber intercepted Dooku's strike.  
  
Dooku eyed the young Padawan. "Brave of you, boy."  
  
Dooku switched his attention to Anakin. The two traded blows and it would seem that Anakin fared better than his master in single combat with the count. The two lightsabers danced and clashed as Anakin aggressively sought out Dooku's weakness. Dooku showed none to the young Padawan.  
  
Alan slowly felt his strength returning. Dooku had showered him with the brunt of the force lightning, and had slammed him into the wall for added effect. But the power of the Force was beginning to flow through him, and he was beginning to get a feel for the dark whirlwind. He eagerly watched Anakin and Dooku clash, waiting for the right time to enter the duel. Then it happened.  
  
"Anakin!" Alan growled as Anakin's right hand fell to the floor. Having cleaved off the young Padawan's hand, Dooku stretched out with the force and pushed the boy back. Anakin slumped to the floor. Alan roared and pounced into the air, both ends of his lightsaber lit.  
  
Alan glared at the count with the vicious scowl that was etched upon his face. That splitting headache, the black migraine, was beckoning to him. It was swelling and calling for intensity, calling for Vaapad. The black migraine became more powerful the deeper Alan sank into the dark whirlwind. Dooku would pay for Anakin's arm. Dooku would pay for Master Tor's death.  
  
Alan knew the sensation. It had taken control of him the day Lana was shot by Noré. It had returned, more powerful than ever. Anger. Hatred. There was no restraint, there was no discipline, and there would be no mercy. The more Alan's anger flowed, the more powerful his whirlwind became.  
  
Overwhelmed by Alan's assault, Count Dooku fell back. There was a pause in the fighting as four meters of empty space stood between the two warriors. Alan began to feel the salt sting of perspiration and the coiling fatigue of his muscles. Dooku analyzed his foe. His eyes narrowed. Dooku could feel his anger.  
  
"The Force is with you, young Dawnstrider." Dooku said. He closed his eyes as he felt the darkness generated by this Jedi permeate throughout the room. His anger was... refreshing. It was new. "I can feel your anger."  
  
"You're going to pay for all the Jedi you killed today." Alan mirrored Anakin's earlier words.  
  
"I will pay?" Dooku asked sinisterly as he searched Alan's feelings. "Especially... for your master?"  
  
The black migraine swelled. Alan roared in anguish and assaulted Dooku again. All Alan could see was Dooku's throat. All he could hear was Dooku's heartbeat. All he could imagine was Dooku's death. As he continued to exchange blows with the count, he could hear a million different voices crying out in his head, crying for blood, crying for the end of count Dooku.  
  
"Yes... Tor has taught you well. But it is your anger has made you powerful." Dooku commented as they came to another break in the fight. "Only your hatred can defeat me, boy. USE IT!"  
  
Alan attacked again. For one reason or another, his attack fell short this time, and Dooku had caught him off guard. Alan backed away.  
  
"Today has seen the end of your master. Shall it see the end of you too?"  
  
Alan attacked again, this time with a renewed sense of vigor. Enthralled in his anger, the Jedi Guardian was nearly unstoppable. His rage knew no bounds. Alan viciously sliced and hacked at inanimate objects that got in his way. While pursuing the count though the hangar, Alan left a string of debris in his wake.  
  
"Beautiful..." Dooku remarked sadistically as they came to another pause in the fighting. He looked at the boy with a sense of wonder. Dooku knew the way of the Sith- master versus apprentice, apprentice versus master. Lord Sidious was little more than a schemer, and when the time came, Dooku would usurp the mantle of Dark Lord.  
  
"You can't defeat me." Alan growled.  
  
Dooku grinned evilly. This boy would make for a powerful ally and a prized apprentice. This time, Dooku attacked. The red blade clashed against the two blue blades in an endless fight for victory.  
  
With each attack and each slash, Alan could see his old mentor's face, haunting him. Alan's heart beat with pain as he thought of the Wookie Jedi Master. Tor was the closest thing he had ever had to a father, and now he was gone, gone because of Dooku. Alan's lust for retribution intensified tenfold as he fully focused his hatred upon this dark Jedi.  
  
Vaapad is the path to the shadow of the dark side. Mace had told Alan this many times during training. But now, in his darkest hour submerged in the whirlwind of Vaapad, Alan did not sense the shadow of that dark side. This was the dark side. Alan hit Dooku's lightsaber with such force that the dark Jedi lost his grip of his saber and dropped it. Alan held the blade of his saber to the dark Jedi's throat.  
  
"I am beaten." Dooku remarked. He grinned evilly again. "Now finish it."  
  
"Surrender." Alan ordered.  
  
"I can sense it stewing within you: the rage, the anguish, the hatred, all flowing to harmoniously. It's beautiful." Dooku said sadistically. "I know what you want to do. You have executed flawlessly up until this point."  
  
"Alan, no!" Obi-Wan warned. Alan's jaw clamped down even harder. He paid the Jedi Master no mind. Obi-Wan was of no importance. Obi-Wan could not save him.  
  
"Give in to your anger!" Dooku ordered. "Now, I am unarmed. Strike me down!"  
  
Alan's grip tightened as he glared at the count. Every muscle, every nerve, every sinew within his was screaming, 'kill him, kill him!' Alan knew he could do it, the Jedi rules no longer held him down. Alan could see it now, a vision of the dark side. He would simply give his lightsaber a whirl and Dooku's head would roll off his shoulders, severed by the searing heat of the blue blade.  
  
But something beckoned to him. Something had penetrated through the cloud of anger, through the shroud of hatred, and through the black migraine... Lana... Alan closed his eyes. He could feel her coming close; he could feel her presence as though he was wrapped up in her loving embrace this very second.  
  
The anger and hatred began to drain from his mind as he practically felt her rejuvenating caress. The black migraine faded, and his rationale returned. He looked at the count with a calm expression, and he felt the darkness that had permeated throughout the room- the darkness he had created.  
  
"Count Dooku." Alan took a deep breath as he lowered his lightsaber. "By the authority of the Jedi Council, I place you under arrest for charges of high treason, conspiracy, attempted murder, sabotage, and espionage. You are to accompany me to Coruscant, where you will be admitted to the courts for trial."  
  
A bitter expression of disappointment replaced Dooku's sadistic grin. "Fool." He spat as he stretched out with the Force and used it to punch Alan in the face. The Jedi Guardian stumbled back and clasped his face as blood began to flow out of his nose. Alan never saw Dooku call the curved lightsaber back into his hand. He could not respond to the count's lunge, until it was too late. Alan felt Dooku's crimson blade stab through his abdomen and poke out though his back.  
  
"No!" 


	10. Cloudy Sunsets

Chapter X- Cloudy Sunsets  
  
Lana screamed. Dooku grinned. Alan collapsed. The Jedi Consular ran over and dropped to her lover's side, clutching his hand. She could feel the black tide of oblivion encroaching upon him- the cold wave of death. She pressed her free hand upon the gaping hole in his stomach, reaching out with the Force to try to quell the wound.  
  
Dooku circled the two Jedi calmly. Lana looked up to the Dark Jedi, her eyes swimming in tears. Dooku raised his saber high over his head. Lana made no move to fight him, she only focused upon Alan. The sinister evil grin manifested itself again, but just as quickly faded. Dooku turned around, greeted by an all too familiar shadow stalking in the corridor.  
  
"Mace Windu." Dooku's patronizingly polite tone cackled.  
  
"Count Dooku." The Jedi Master returned.  
  
"You've interfered with my affairs for the last time, Mace."  
  
A piece of machinery broke off the wall and hurtled at the powerful Jedi Master. It began to accelerate at massive speeds as it hurtled towards him. Mace, apparently made of steel, did not hesitate or falter, he did not so much as reach out with the Force to deflect the attack. He simply stood straight, eying the machinery and allowing it to strike him. The piece of machinery hit with such force that it snapped in two. Mace was still standing. Not a single bead of sweat or a single yelp of pain had come from the Jedi Master. The Force was protecting him like an iron robe.  
  
Dooku did not fret for a moment. As senior members of the Jedi council, both Master Windu and Master Yoda had become vanguards of ancient secrets, Dooku knew this. He also knew that his bag of dark tricks was still full with mischief. "Master Windu, I've become more powerful than any Jedi, even you." His right hand jetted forward, unleashing the chaotic blue bolts of force lightning. Mace didn't so as much as blink as the bolts struck him. Dooku grinned, but his smug feelings of victory were premature.  
  
Lightning pulsed through Mace's body and he seemed to take the bolts like a lightning rod. Yet he did not stagger or cry out in pain, he simply stood still, the usual stone cold expression etched upon his face. This same lightning which had left Alan and Anakin agonized and crippled had no adverse effect upon Mace.  
  
"Your ability to corrupt the Force does not impress me, Dooku." Mace folded his arms before his chest. The electric energy from the Force lightning was pulsing through his body at incredible speeds. The aged Master calmly disciplined the energy, allowing it to slowly return to the Force. Mace reached for his lightsaber. "Are ready to fight for real now?"  
  
Dooku's only reply was a solemn nod. He was then greeted by several fury swipes from the sizzling purple blade. In the blink of an eye, Mace covered about seven meters of distance and made three well timed swings. Dooku grinned as he blocked each attack. He finally had a real opponent.  
  
"Alan..." Lana whispered. She was subsequently awed by the dueling of the two masters. Dooku cut one of the power cords, and the entire chamber was immersed in darkness, lit only by the clashing purple and red blades. "Alan."  
  
The Jedi Guardian looked up, his eyes showing pain and sadness, but among those two intertwined emotions was one that cut much deeper: guilt. "I... almost fell, Lana." He gasped. "I would have killed him, and would have used my anger..."  
  
"But you didn't."  
  
He coughed vehemently. Blood dripped out of his mouth. The gaping hole in his abdomen had been cauterized by the heat of Dooku's saber, but not completely. Blood was beginning to gush from the wound. Lana focused intently, but her tearful expression deepened as she realized that she couldn't stop the bleeding.  
  
He shook his head weakly. "I'm... I'm sorry."  
  
"No-NO!" She almost screamed. She focused her energy upon his wound again. "Just calm down, I need to save you..."  
  
Alan grinned. "You already did, Lana. You already did." He clutched her hand as he slowly remembered the final seconds of that fight he just had with Dooku. The overwhelming anger of that had conquered him was quelled only by one thing. "You saved me, Lana. Your love saved me..."  
  
This brought a teary smile to her face. She leaned down and kissed him, encircling him with her arms. "I love you."  
  
"I love you, too." He whispered into her ear.  
  
Tears gushed down her face as she felt a crunching feeling within her heart. Their emotions, feelings and thoughts seemed to pulse together, intertwined by the force. Her mind touched his. She could feel the pain he felt, the effects of the electrocution, the gaping hole in his abdomen, as if it were her own. The Jedi Consular despaired for a moment. She was going to lose him. She was going to lose him! "No, you can't die." Lana whispered. Fierce determination arose to replace despair. "I'm not going to let you die. I can save you. I will save you, I know I can!"  
  
She used the Force to reach deep into his body, trying to curb the damage that had been done. Alan had been astringently damaged by Force lightning before even being stabbed by a lightsaber. The cumulative effects of electrocution, stabbing, and physical overexertion from the earlier battle in the coliseum would be near impossible to repair, even for the greatest of Jedi healers. Yet Lana refused to despair. Her focus intensified as she forged on, fueled by the unrelenting love which pulsed through her heart and mind.  
  
Obi-Wan watched the two lovers. He could feel the intensity of the emotions that surged through broadcast and echoed throughout the chamber almost as loudly as the clashes of Master Windu's and Count Dooku's lightsabers. He sighed sharply and looked away, refocusing his gaze upon Dooku and Master Windu. Both had fought masterfully, and unlike the uneven duel that had taken place on the Coliseum balcony, the two had come out even.  
  
Beads of sweat dripped down Mace's face. Dooku's silver hair was soaked with perspiration. Another sequence of clashes followed. The purple blade and the red blade found themselves evenly matched. Mace's firm resolve did not falter for a second. He unleashed another round of attacks. This time, Dooku found himself falling back to an obvious disadvantage.  
  
The aged dark Jedi was beginning to feel fatigue encroach upon him. His old body was no longer tuned for long, extended duels such as this, and the Force could no longer aid him.  
  
"Perhaps you're not more powerful than me after all." Mace remarked slyly. He held his lightsaber high over his head, impersonating the old style of lightsaber combat Dooku was so fond of.  
  
"This isn't over, Mace." Dooku hissed. "It's only begun." He reached out with his off hand, snapping the base of a crane that stood by the crumpled bodies of Anakin and Obi-Wan. He then withdrew his saber and ran for his ship.  
  
Coward!  
  
Mace's expression hardened. His jaw clamped as he watched Dooku run. The muscles tensed even more as the crane began to topple. A millisecond to make a decision: get Dooku and let Obi-Wan and Anakin Die, or save Anakin and Obi-wan but let Dooku get away. Jedi objective number one: preserve life. He holstered his lightsaber and stretched out with the Force. The crane came to a halt, inches away from smashing Obi-Wan.  
  
Alan's condition was beginning to stabilize. Lana looked up from her work. Mace was visibly struggling with the crane. His expression contorted with strain as he struggled to keep the massive object from smashing Obi-Wan and his apprentice. Lana took in a deep breath. She reached out with her own Force powers, trying to aiding powerful master.  
  
Mace let out a relived sigh as the crane budged and away from Obi-Wan and Anakin. His glum expression deepened as he watched Dooku's ship jet away. Obi-Wan and Anakin slowly rose to their feet. Padmé came rushing in, blaster rifle at her side. She was accompanied by several clone troopers. The senator lovingly swept her hands around Anakin and kissed him on the cheek. He groaned as he slipped his left arm around her. Blood dripped from the bloody stump where his right hand used to be.  
  
Lana helped Alan to his feet. She had stabilized his condition, and now he would need to get to a bacta tank to heal the gaping wound. Obi-Wan approached them, a solemn expression marking his face. "You two have some explaining to do." He said. Mace's solid expression echoed Obi-Wan's foreboding words.  
  
* Two days later *  
  
Lana and Alan stood at the center of the council circle. Lana knew that many Jedi had died on Geonosis, but she was shocked to learn that a few of those casualties were members of the council. Of the twelve members, three were missing. Two chairs were left empty, but Master Kenobi filled the third. This led Lana to wonder if he had already been chosen to serve...  
  
"Recount to us, you will, the events of Alderaan." Yoda said. The diminutive master had tasted combat for the first time in a long time on Geonosis. His masterful strategies and tactics led the clone armies to a sound victory over the droids. The cost however, was the lives of over a hundred Jedi.  
  
Alan grabbed Lana's hand. She made no effort to resist, she needed his support. The weight of the council's eyes was bearing down upon them.  
  
"We investigated the killings as we had been ordered." Alan reported. He looked to Lana first, before continuing with his confession. His burdened voice continued. "When we were alone, late at night to meditate, I... we confessed our feelings to each other and fell in love."  
  
Master Windu sighed. "And you gave in to your passions?"  
  
"We tried hard not to, Master." Lana said. "But in the end we could not resist."  
  
"Besides, it was beyond passion, Master Windu." Alan added. Mace's eyes glinted as his contemplative gaze analyzed Alan. Alan gulped hard, trying to swallow his uncertainties. His stomach churned with indigestion. "It was love. I'm not afraid or ashamed to admit it before you, or before the whole council. I love her."  
  
Lana blushed as she eyed him. The council fell silent. Mace leaned back in his chair, trying his best to make sense of the situation. Yoda closed his eyes, his ears drawing back as he searched the Force for some kind of wisdom, some kind of insight into how to deal with this.  
  
"It is a powerful bond that served the both of you well." A single voice spoke up. Master Kenobi leaned forward in his chair, his steel blue eyes glinting as he analyzed the two young knights. "It saved you from the darkside, didn't it, Alan?"  
  
He nodded as he traded looks with Lana. Of all the Jedi present, they had least expected Master Kenobi to help them.  
  
"I was there, Alan. I sensed the darkness you were submerged in." Obi-Wan's voice degraded as he searched through his darker memories. A pained wince developed as he continued. "And it is a darkness I know all too well. Losing your master is not an easy thing to take. I touched the darkside myself when Qui-Gon perished." His stare shifted over to Lana. "You saved him. You used the calming effect of love to bring him out of that darkness."  
  
Obi-Wan looked over to Yoda, silently conveying his vote. The sage old master looked over to Mace.  
  
"Master Kenobi's point is well made: your bond together has become a strong point; it has empowered the both of you." Mace analyzed.  
  
"Love lifts us up to places we normally cannot be." Lana said.  
  
"That is true, and in spite of all the Jedi teachings, I saw it first hand, and I cannot argue it, Lana. You drew upon your love for Alan to save him, something that would be impossible, even for great Jedi healers. But while it may empower the both of you, this emotional bond is a severe weak point. However I recognize that it extends beyond emotion, beyond love. The two of you have been joined through the Force."  
  
Lana and Alan nodded in unison. It was true, they had felt their feelings and senses beginning to bind and connect together. The joint meditation they often conducted together had done much to intertwine their powers.  
  
Yoda nodded as Mace silently communicated his vote to the diminutive master. He silently made up his own mind and administered his judgment, the judgment of the council. "Approve of this we do not." He said. Lana's grasp of Alan's hand tightened. "But allow it we will."  
  
Alan let out a sigh of relief. Lana smiled joyously. He slipped his arm around her shoulders, holding her close. Mace nodded, accepting the Jedi pair. Obi-Wan smiled benevolently. Yoda simply sat back in his chair.  
  
"Now, Senator Amidala is returning to her home planet of Naboo." Mace said. "Anakin Skywalker is escorting her home, but she is still in grave danger. The both of you are to accompany them to Naboo. When the senator is secure, Alan and Anakin will return to the temple for reassignment. We suspect that Senator Amidala will be in frequent danger, seeing as Nute Gunray has some sort of personal vendetta against her. Lana, you are now the Senator's Jedi Protector."  
  
* Two days later *  
  
Sunlight bathed the country lake retreat, and the water sparkled under its yellow rays. Rose petals rained from the sky and onto the ground. A Nabooian holy man stood at the edge of the balcony, palming a small leather- bound book in hand. Anakin Skywalker walked his bride down the aisle to the edge of the balcony. Padmé looked magnificent in her ivory-white wedding dress. The couple stood before the holy man, gently exchanging their commitments to each other.  
  
R2-D2 whistled with joy. The Naboo-made astromech droid had been superbly polished and cleaned for the occasion. His counterpart, C-3PO, stood by his side, in reverent silence. During the trip to Naboo, Anakin had worked feverishly to outfit his first creation with a new set of gold plating. The goldenrod droid beamed with a renewed sense of love for his creator. Seated together on a bench, Alan and Lana watched from the sidelines. Alan had violated Jedi tradition, choosing to wear a suit rather than Jedi robes, to honor the occasion. Lana had done the same; she was wearing the beautiful dress Padmé had given to her. They watched happily, feeling a small hollow of their own souls fulfilled as Anakin and Padmé exchanged vows.  
  
The holy man closed his book and slowly stepped away. Anakin leaned in and kissed his bride. The senator kissed him back, slipping her arms around his waist. A single tear of joy coursed down his face as he pulled back to look into her eyes. The maroon vessels showed only love as they too filled with tears. Husband and wife slowly made their exit from the balcony, trudging back to the most secluded room of the lodge were they would be alone for the rest of the stay.  
  
Alan and Lana exchanged looks. The Jedi Consular leaned forward and kissed her rehabilitated lover. He slipped his arm around her back and drew her closer to him. She leaned her head against his chest, smiling contentedly as he ran his fingers through her long brown hair.  
  
The two Jedi sat on the bench like this for several minutes suspended in the moment. Alan opened his eyes and sighed weakly, realizing that time was running short. "We only have a few days, Lana." He said sadly. "Anakin and I will be on our way back to the temple, and you'll still be here with the senator..."  
  
"I know." She whispered back. She placed her hand over his heart. "We're here." She said. She then tapped her finger against his temple. "And here. You and I, we'll never be apart. The Force has linked us."  
  
"I know. I only have to close my eyes and meditate, and I can feel your presence through the Force." He replied. "But this, this, what we have right now is so much different from that. Holding you, feeling your body against mine... its something no Force-bond can ever match."  
  
She knew he was right, because she felt the same way. The Jedi Consular slowly looked up into her lover's eyes. "It's true. And... and this might be the only time we have in a long time. Let's not waste it worrying about the future."  
  
He smiled and kissed her. She kissed back. He swept her into his arms and carried her as he rose from the seat on the bench. R2 and 3PO were left alone out on the balcony to watch the Sun make its trek through the sky...  
  
* * *  
  
Cloudy skies dominated Coruscant. Mace and Obi-Wan looked into the horizon as the sun desperately tried to peek through holes in the dark clouds. Obi- Wan silently thought of the battle on Geonosis. Two images seemed to replay constantly within his head, the first being Anakin's loss of a limb, and the second being Alan's sudden resistance to the darkside.  
  
He sighed deeply as he thought of Qui-Gon's death yet again. Had he drawn power from the darkside to defeat Maul? Was it his strong Jedi resolve, or his own anguish from watching his Master fall that gave him the extra power needed to topple the Sith lord? Obi-Wan sighed yet again. Even he did not know the answer to the looming question.  
  
Mace gently patted him on the shoulder. "Don't doubt yourself, Obi-Wan. You fought well that day, and you did do the right thing. Qui-Gon would have been proud."  
  
Obi-Wan nodded, feeling the burden lift slightly. He then thought of Geonosis again, of the aged Count Dooku. "I have to admit, it would not have been a victory without the help of the clones."  
  
"Victory, you say?" Yoda asked from his seat several meters away. "Not victory, Master Obi-Wan. The shroud of the darkside has fallen. Begun the Clone wars have."  
  
Obi-Wan shuddered as he felt the looming darkness in Yoda's words echo. He looked out to the dark cloudy skies again, watching as the first new line of Republic Assault Ships ascended to the sky, carrying their payload of Clone Troopers. He dreadfully acknowledged the dark future and Yoda's wisdom with a simple nod. The Clone wars have begun.  
  
!The End!  
  
A/N: Thanks to all my readers, thank you sooo very much to Nima, who encouraged me to finish the final chapter of the story... sorry for taking so long to post this, the last chapter... heh. Uhhh maybe there will be a sequel someday (or rather a related story featuring the same characters). Thanks again for reading! 


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